Your Facebook, please (to see if I let you enter the country)

The Facebook profile next to the passport? Just over a week after Trump's inauguration and in full controversy over the restrictions on immigrants of the new president, Twitter has been filled with comments related precisely to this issue.And we are not referring to vetos, say, habitual, but to others that have to do with something that has called our attention powerfully: social networks .

Yes, because the American giant has begun to ask for those who try to access their territory more than the passport: their profile name on Facebook .The end? Try to find out if there are indications of terrorist or similar affinities .An initiative that is not new but that, apparently and, according to numerous complaints detected in the microblogging platform, has begun to execute this mass same weekend.

Comments on Twitter and other websites

US Border patrol is deciding reentry for green card holders on a case by case basis-questions abt political views, chking facebook, etc

-Mana Yegani (@Law_Mana) January 28, 2017

Some lawyers and specialists have denounced publicly, through the community and also in the media, that many of their clients have been immersed in this situation. This is the case of Maga Yegani , a member of the American Bar Association and who, in an interview with the CNET, gave some more strokes on the whole issue.

"These are people who are arriving legally, who have their jobs and cars here, and who have been allowed to live in the United States, but who are engaged in this situation on the border," he said..A events that raise doubts and that raise the question of where is the limit between freedom of expression, the right to privacy and, in this case, the defense of national security.

The background of the measure

It's not about a new measure , but that has been operational since the end of December.In particular, it is part of the so-called Visa Waiver program, which includes the question of social networks and that already raised the criticisms and protests of hundreds of civil rights representatives.

It affects visitors from up to 38 countries -among which Spain is included-and tries to identify their terrorist potential.The proposal was carried out only a few months ago, in June, after the Customs and Border Protection Department proposed adding it.

Is it a good idea?

At this point, it is worth asking if it is a good idea .That is, can the use of social networks be a reliable indicator? Is anyone really thinking about perpetrating a terrorist attack? Would you spread it on social networks? The latter answer is quite obvious, however, here we must take into account a series of considerations related to the amount of information that can be obtained on Facebook about us.

That is, it is likely that a person who can potentially be captured by cells such as ISIS, share content or have related conversations, but also to be more suspicious about it and take precautions when I start to have it a little clearer.

Also, not necessarily-even if you have shown your affinity with these types of groups-this information can prove that you are going to act criminally.In fact, and as the Electronic Frontier Foundation points out, this " no guarantees that innocent travelers are not judged inappropriately, nor that they are not denied entry into the United States."

It is unknown exactly what is the criterion that is used to prohibit access, because here personal aspects such as political opinions, race, religion, and more come into play.single It takes public posts into account, so that in cases such as the San Bernardino attack it would have been equally ineffective, since its author expressed his sympathy with the terrorists in private messages, but shared them only with his friends.

The fight against terrorism of FACEBOOK AND OTHER social networks

On the other hand, you have to have consider the anti-terrorist commitment of Facebook and other tech giants .In fact, this has become one of its great struggles in the Zuckerberg network, to such an extent that the entity has a specific team of employees who are responsible for managing these types of complaints and who, according to the CEO, give priority to these types of messages.

In the terms of the service we also find explicit references to the promotion of violence, hate and terrorism.In any case, the matter is not there, but a few months ago and as we learned from the Wall Street Journal, the social network made those users who used words like Mujahideen and Sharia began to watch videos that tried to raise awareness about the dangers of jihadist terrorism .

It was a kind of cartoons in which the flag of the Islamic State, weapons and warning messages and information about these "trends" were displayed.An initiative that, in addition, was part of a project funded by Alphabet and whose goal was to end extremist propaganda.Another participant was Twitter.

The virtual community has long collaborated with the US government itself to prevent the spread of terrorist messages.At the end of Obama's mandate, he also mediates his pressure to prohibit individuals from offering firearms on the platform.In this case, is not comparable to what the bluebird network does , famous for its constant elimination of profiles of this type-already in mid-2015 it suspended more than 125,000, and this same summer it did the same with another 225,000-.

Social networks as a form of SURVEILLANCE

In short, it is a new form of surveillance through social networks that will not surprise many, especially if we take into account the revelations of Edward Snowden and Julian Assange.In addition, these measures are already exercised in other environments such as professional hiring.We have all heard about the research carried out by the employee recruitment companies and how some candidates have been excluded for hanging photographs with glasses in their hands or other reprehensible attitudes for the company in question.

The configuration and privacy options of our networks and moderation and common sense are essential in this new context.And even call centers are about to start using the data we dump on this social network to offer operators with greater affinity to us.

Images | Pixabay