US eyes sweeping expansion of data collection for visa-free travellers

Travellers who currently enter the United States without a visa may soon have to hand over far more personal information, including years of social media activity, old email accounts and family background, as the Trump administration moves to tighten screening.

According to a notice published Wednesday in the Federal Register, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is proposing to collect up to five years of social media data from people using the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) under the Visa Waiver Program. Citizens of 42 countries, among them the UK, Germany, Japan, Australia, Israel, Qatar and South Korea, rely on ESTA for visits of up to 90 days without an embassy interview.

The current ESTA form already asks for basic details like parents’ names and criminal history. A question about social media accounts was added in 2016 but has remained optional. The new proposal would make that disclosure far more extensive.

The agency also wants to gather phone numbers used in the last five years and email addresses from the past decade. Officials say they plan to add “high-value data fields” when feasible, including:

– metadata from uploaded photos
– detailed information about applicants’ family members, including their places of birth
– family phone numbers used in the last five years
– biometric identifiers such as fingerprints, DNA and iris scans

The notice does not explain what officials plan to look for in travellers’ social media histories or why such broad data is needed. CBP frames the proposal as part of implementing a January executive order from President Donald Trump calling for intensified screening to block potential security threats.

Travellers who apply for standard visas, rather than using ESTA, already must provide social media details, a rule that began under Trump and continued through the Biden administration.