As said in a document obtained by Statewatch, the police want to use open-source research on visa applicants and also develop so-called risk profiles, EU Helpers reports.

Such a recommendation is part of the Handbook on Schengen visa fraud, and the main aim of this move, according to the German authorities, is to asses applicants’ risk of committing visa fraud.

The handbook recommends that the authorities gather information for visa applicants from publicly available sources, including social media sites and networks.

Moreover, the handbook also suggests that risk profiles be created for applicants. These profiles would summarise the information of applicants based on some criteria such as gender, age, origin, groups of persons, means of travel, itinerary, importer, issuing authority of the visa, purpose of travel, specified destination, and some other information, where applicable.

Information Would Be Gathered From Publicly Available Sources, Handbook Stresses

Taking into account the large number of foreign nationals applying for Schengen visas each year and the increased number of fraud cases, the police highlighted that this measure would significantly help confirm the information on the applicants.

A German police spokesperson said for Statewatch that research on social media would be used to verify the information that is already available to everyone else.

Moreover, it was noted that such an approach would help the authorities craft specific questions for certain applicants and not assess them against subjective criteria.

Commenting on the legal basis for open source investigation, the spokesperson said that the gathering of such information on visa applicants falls within the legal framework for border controls and is in line with the rules for issuing Schengen visas.

At the moment, there are no fields for social media in the application form that German Schengen visa applicants need to complete. However, the German police said in the report that social media is openly accessible, suggesting that they can access data on applicants as needed.