Migrants now asked to use app to seek U.S. asylum; advocates raise concerns

People in Mexico hoping for U.S. asylum are now being asked to use a mobile app, but advocates remain concerned over how the data it collects will be used and the large number of migrants who may lack the technology to use it. The app CBP One had already been in use by the administration for some purposes but was officially expanded to allow asylum-seekers to be pre-screened. Those who qualify are given appointments for a date and port of entry where they can enter the U.S. and begin their asylum request process. The app also is being used for people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela with sponsors in the U.S. to begin the process to get paroled into the country for two years. Since its activation last week, the app has been in such demand that it is telling applicants it has run out of appointments, according to Mexican officials and a dozen migrants, some of whom shared phone screenshots with Reuters. Many migrants have phones, but others arrive without them or have limited or no Wi-Fi access. Some lose phones or are robbed of them on their journeys. “One of our main concerns about the app is how it will impact accessibility and one of the things we are concerned about is how complicated the app is to use for people who may not know they need a phone to access it, who may not have good Wi-Fi and those who may not understand the process of signing up, creating a password, getting two-step verification,” said Raul Pinto, senior staff attorney for the American Immigration Council. Pinto said there is concern about how will people get access to request asylum at a port of entry if they do not have the ability to download the app from where they are. The administration wants to move away from third parties assisting people in using the apps and have people apply directly. Pinto said international organizations had access to the app previously over their own phones and were able to help provide people needing Wi-Fi and internet access. But he said there were reports of abuses; some nonprofit organizations refused to use the app and some third parties were charging money to help people use it. “The efforts to make it more widely accessible are laudable and at the same time allowing for technology to make the process more expedient, I think that’s something that should be considered,” Pinto said. But he questioned whether the administration is making available all the information people need to use it and whether it's widely accessible. Darryl Morin, president and CEO of Forward Latino advocacy group, said he tried the app and came away frustrated. “I consider myself an educated man and still found it extremely complicated,” Morin told NBC News. Groups have also raised concerns about how app users' personal information will be used and stored. Pinto said the app does not hold people’s information, but the information entered on CBP One passes through other government databases, some which can hold the information for years. For more informaiton, visit us at http://www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com/index.html.