Visa applicants will have to provide all their social media usernames
Nearly all applicants for US visas will have to submit their social media details under newly adopted rules.
The State Department regulations say people will have to submit social media names and five years' worth of email
addresses and phone numbers.
When proposed last year, authorities estimated the proposal would affect 14.7 million people annually.
Certain diplomatic and official visa applicants will be exempt from the stringent new measures.
However, people travelling to the US to work or to study will have to hand over their information.
"We are constantly working to find mechanisms to improve our screening processes to protect US citizens, while supporting legitimate travel to the United States," the department reportedly said.
Feeling the impact of Trump's foreign worker squeeze
US sets visa limits in Ghana deportee row
Previously, only applicants who needed additional vetting - such as people who [...]
What is Social Media? Social media are interactive computer-mediated technologies. These facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, career interests and other forms of expression via virtual communities and networks. As users engage with these electronic services, they create highly interactive platforms
through which individuals, communities, and organizations can share, co-create, discuss, participate and modify user-generated content or pre-made content posted online. Some of the most popular social media websites, with over 100 million registered users, include Facebook, YouTube, WeChat, Instagram, QQ, QZone, Weibo, Twitter, Tumblr, Telegram, Reddit, Baidu Tieba, LinkedIn, LINE, Snapchat, Pinterest, Viber, MeWe, and VK.