The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee voiced support on Thursday for legislation that would require officials to screen the social media accounts of visa applicants.
“A simple check of social media accounts of foreign travelers and visa applicants will help ensure that those who have participated in, pledged allegiance to, or communicated with terrorist organizations cannot enter the United States,” Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said in a statement.
The Social Media Screening for Terrorists Act was introduced by Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., in December. It followed reports that perpetrators of the Dec. 2 attack in San Bernardino, Calif., had posted content on social media that would have alarmed authorities had it been noticed.
The Obama administration has insisted that no policies were in place that would have prevented officials at the Department of Homeland Security from screening the social media pages of those coming into the country. However, several reports have contradicted that claim, and an internal DHS memo from 2011 indicated that employees were actually prohibited from looking at social media accounts.
During a Tuesday hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said the Islamic State had become one of the “most proficient” terrorist groups “harnessing social media to disseminate propaganda and solicit recruits among a broad audience.”
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Clapper added that the group’s affiliates were likely to continue that activity in 2016, using “videos, photos and other propaganda glorifying life under ISIL rule and promoting the group’s military successes.”
