Trump Might Ask You to Hand Over Your Phone and Passwords Next Time You Visit the US

The Trump administration has surprised no one with its plans to take immigration vetting to the next level.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the White House has begun revising the vetting procedures of incoming passengers to the U.S.

The procedure being considered is said to involve finding out who U.S. entrants are communicating with, and could require passengers to hand over social media account passwords and phone contact lists.

Homeland Security officials have told the Wall Street Journal that they expect to extend this procedure beyond refugees to include tourists and immigrants as well. This would include tourists from ally countries such as Australia and England.

Gene Hamilton, senior counselor to the Department of Homeland Security's Secretary, told the WSJ that the current approaches weren’t strict enough.

"If there is any doubt about a person's intentions coming to the United States, they should have to overcome—really and truly prove to our satisfaction—that they are coming for legitimate reasons," Hamilton said.

The Trump administration has explained that the changes would be justified due to the renewed fight against terrorism.

The new discussions come just weeks after Trump's two failed attempts at imposing a travel ban on immigrants and refugees from seven specific countries (Iran was later taken off the list).

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