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Visitors to the U.S. may have to hand over their phones and Facebook passwords before they get a visa

The Trump administration mulls “extreme vetting.”

Donald Trump Delivers Address To Joint Session Of Congress Jim Lo Scalzo - Pool / Getty
Peter Kafka covers media and technology, and their intersection, at Vox. Many of his stories can be found in his Kafka on Media newsletter, and he also hosts the Recode Media podcast.

Coming to America? You may have to hand over your phone — and your Facebook password — before you do.

The Trump administration may ask visa applicants to hand over their phones, along with social media logins and passwords, the Wall Street Journal reports. It’s part of the “extreme vetting” for visitors to the U.S. Trump promised during his campaign.

Trump officials previously floated the idea this year. But at the time, they planned on scrutinizing visitors from majority-Muslim countries. Now, the WSJ says, “the changes could apply to people from all over the world, including allies like France and Germany.

U.S. customs agents already have the ability to demand phones at border crossings. Now Trump officials are talking about asking visa applicants to hand over their devices — and passwords — before they head to the U.S.


This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

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