Trump signs order to begin Mexico border wall in immigration crackdown ....
A provision in the executive order also removed privacy protections for non-US citizens, explicitly instructing immigration officials to “exclude persons who are not United States citizens or lawful permanent residents from the protections of the Privacy Act regarding personally identifiable information.”
The removal of privacy protections will make non-Americans transiting through Customs entry points, at airports and elsewhere, liable to be searched more intrusively, according to a former senior Homeland Security official who requested anonymity.
The change was a “very insidious” shift away from the policies of the George W Bush and Barack Obama administrations, the official said, and made it more likely for customs officials to search through non-citizens’ digital lives, including their social media accounts and personal devices.
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