Privacy

U.S. Government Wants to Expand Social Media Surveillance

U.S. Customs and Border Protection wants to add an “optional” field asking people to list their social media accounts to its mandatory border-crossing forms. Thousands of you have already told the agency you think that’s a bad idea. Unfortunately, its proposal just got even worse. Customs and Border Protection has extended the comment window on the proposal, hoping to bolster its case and drown out our voices. But we will not be ignored.

Act now to tell the U.S. government to respect our rights and retract its proposal to collect social media accounts at the border.

We’ve seen the revised form (PDF download), and the “Social Media Identifier” field isn’t even marked as optional — making it mandatory for travelers entering the United States to list their social media accounts.

This kind of broad-strokes data collection violates fundamental privacy rights and hinders freedom of expression — and there's no proof it would do anything to improve security. Instead, it sets a terrible example for other countries around the world that follow U.S. travel security standards.

To make matters worse, Customs and Border Protection is also pushing a separate proposal dramatically expanding its ability to store and share the social media data it would collect. Under the new system, travelers’ social media records could be shared with law enforcement and other government agencies both in bulk and on a case-by-case basis.

This kind of surveillance makes users at risk – communities of color, religious groups, the LGBTQI community, and others in marginalized groups who depend on the internet to connect with one another – even more vulnerable. It’s especially harmful to individuals living under repressive regimes where people who identify as part of an oppressed group and express themselves online could be subject to harsh penalties — including arrest or death.

Take action now to stop the U.S. government’s expansion of social media surveillance.

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Personalize your message.Feel free to edit the text below. Clicking submit will send your customized comment to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, including your name (if provided above) in the signature block.

OMB Desk Officer for Cusoms and Border Protection,

Department of Homeland Security

I write to request that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Customs and Border Protection (CBP) withdraw proposed changes to the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) and Forms I-94 and I-94W that would enable collection of “social media identifiers.” The proposal remains a threat to our rights to freedom of expression, freedom of association, and privacy protected by international and domestic law.

Government collection and monitoring of social media activity has a chilling effect on speech, and intimate details of our private lives can be gleaned from monitoring users’ activity. Under the proposal, collection and monitoring is based simply on entering the U.S. rather than any particular suspicion. The negative impacts of monitoring are particularly acute for users at risk, including communities of color, religious groups, LGBTQI communities, and other marginalized communities. The changes not only risk the rights of social media users traveling to the U.S. but also to unwitting connected social media users.

The government’s responses to widespread criticism have failed to address concerns over the impact on our rights. In fact, it is now unclear whether providing “social media identifiers” on Forms I-94 or I-94W would actually be voluntary. The information provided, or not provided, will play a role in decisions to permit entry into the U.S and for a wide array of other purposes, including those unrelated to border protection. Further, the government’s promise to use existing protections to secure data is inadequate in the face of consistent breaches of government-managed databases.

The government has failed to refute the risks to our rights and has failed to substantiate the claims over the value of the data. I urge CBP to withdraw the proposal to collect social media identifiers.

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