Immigration and border security officials across several countries are keeping a track of the visa applicant's online profiles including social media platforms, The Times of India reported.

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The checks are done to analyse if there are any mismatches or inconsistencies in the information provided to the authorities by the traveler, any connections to extremist organisations or if there are posts that could be considered hate speech under the host country's laws, said the TOI report on Monday.

According to the report, in countries such as the US, the authorities have the right to check the travelers' electronic devices as well.

Countries such as Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, UK and US are tracking the applicant's social media trail. The Canadian consular officers who are looking to permanent residency applications have the right to access information that is publicly available, and the applicants have received rejection letters based on anomalies that were detected.

"Under the principle of 'procedural fairness', if the officer finds something unfavourable online such as the applicant's social media account showing a number of photos with someone other than the 'spouse' listed in the application, the officer may call for an interview, giving the applicant a chance to explain," the report said, quoting the US white paper.

First Published:Jul 30, 2018 9:07 AM IST