'National security decision': US orders H-1B, H-4 visa applicants to make social media profiles public

The Donald Trump administration is tightening scrutiny of H-1B visa holders and and their H-4 dependents, ordering applicants to keep every social media profile set to "public."

In a directive released Wednesday, the US State Department said that starting December 15 it will comb through the online activity of all H-1B applicants and their H-4 dependents — an expansion of measures that already applied to students and exchange visitors.

"To facilitate this vetting, all applicants for H-1B and their dependents (H-4), F, M, and J nonimmigrant visas are instructed to adjust the privacy settings on all of their social media profiles to 'public'," the State Department said.

Underscoring that a US visa is a privilege and not a right, the department said it uses all available information in