Department of Homeland Security arrests two Brits for tweeting

[Nica_In_Love 98]

If you are going to "destroy America", don't tell Twitter! This is the lesson two young Brits learned when they took a flight to Los Angeles.

As Leigh Van Bryan, 26, from Coventry and his friend Emily Banting, 24, from Birmingham landed in Los Angeles, they were greeted by the U.S. special agents who handcuffed them and confiscated their passports.

Department of Homeland Security, which rutinely monitors the public postings of users on Twitter and Facebook, spotted the tweet by @LeighBryan to his friend @MelissaxWalton in which he asks "Free this week, for quick gossip/prep before I go and destroy America". Mr Bryan tried to explain to the agents that the word "destroy" is a British slang word for "party" ("destroyed" is also used by Brits to mean "very drunk"), but they ignored him and threw him into jail with Mexican drugdealers.

Ms Banting told the Daily Mail: "The officials told us we were not allowed in to the country because of Leigh's tweet. They wanted to know what we were going to do. They asked why we wanted to destroy America and we tried to explain it meant to get trashed and party."

After 12 hours in a prison cell, the couple were refused entry into the US and put on the plane back to the UK. They will need to apply for a visa if they intend to return to the US in the future.

Source: http://www.whichbudget.com/blog/en/news/1291-department-of-homeland-security-arrests-two-brits-for-tweeting#.Tyci521eKsc.facebook

[GVMack 9]

Wow very serious.

[Nica_In_Love 98]

Be careful with what you tweet! Lol. I don't even understand how Twitter works.

[웃 910]

Be careful with what you tweet! Lol. I don't even understand how Twitter works.

It's Facebook but on a more professional level (I don't think it's really made for friends).

Your statuses are much much shorter.

And it's really best for following news agencies or celebrities.

I use it for news articles. I follow Forbes, The Economist, CNN, Fox, Washington Post, Business Insider, Huffington Post, Yahoo News, and at least 100 more!!!!

LITERALLY every 5 seconds I get a new tweet with article linked... Here is an example of my latest feed as of 11:45pm tonight. You should try it, it's pretty cool and the best hands down for the most up to date real time news....

Edited January 31, 2012 by ☠

[Nica_In_Love 98]

It's Facebook but on a more professional level (I don't think it's really made for friends).

Your statuses are much much shorter.

And it's really best for following news agencies or celebrities.

I use it for news articles. I follow Forbes, The Economist, CNN, Fox, Washington Post, Business Insider, Huffington Post, Yahoo News, and at least 100 more!!!!

LITERALLY every 5 seconds I get a new tweet with article linked... Here is an example of my latest feed as of 11:45pm tonight. You should try it, it's pretty cool and the best hands down for the most up to date real time news....

Thanks!! I actually did join a few months ago upon insistence of my sister but I don't use it. It does sound interesting, especially to be up to date with the news and stuff. I had no idea what the # before words meant until yesterday. I'm on it right now and started following Reuters, NY Times and "What the F Facts". The last one is pretty funny... I just learned that 'Adding the number 4 to the end of Facebook’s URL will automatically direct you to Mark Zuckerberg’s wall.' They forgot to mention you have to add "/4" but it works !

[웃 910]

Thanks!! I actually did join a few months ago upon insistence of my sister but I don't use it. It does sound interesting, especially to be up to date with the news and stuff. I had no idea what the # before words meant until yesterday. I'm on it right now and started following Reuters, NY Times and "What the F Facts". The last one is pretty funny... I just learned that 'Adding the number 4 to the end of Facebook's URL will automatically direct you to Mark Zuckerberg's wall.' They forgot to mention you have to add "/4" but it works !

You really got to get at least 150 people to follow so that your feed is flooded and updated every 15 seconds....It's fun if you are completely bored (I am a lot)

[SuperDuper! 230]

But no one is explaining how the DHS instantly connected the tweets to the guy entering the country. I mean there are 1000's of tweets per hour on Twitter, so unless they inspected the guy's smartphone, it seems most unlikely that a person's tweet could be connected to you as you are entering a POE.

[웃 910]

But no one is explaining how the DHS instantly connected the tweets to the guy entering the country. I mean there are 1000's of tweets per hour on Twitter, so unless they inspected the guy's smartphone, it seems most unlikely that a person's tweet could be connected to you as you are entering a POE.

You don't think our Homeland Security and other agencies have a massive list of suspect phrases that are immediately detected in emails, texts, tweets, FB statuses?

With "Destroy America" being one on the list?

spotted the tweet by @LeighBryan to his friend @MelissaxWalton in which he asks "Free this week, for quick gossip/prep before I go and destroy America".

Edited January 31, 2012 by ☠

[Azzudiin 26]

But no one is explaining how the DHS instantly connected the tweets to the guy entering the country. I mean there are 1000's of tweets per hour on Twitter, so unless they inspected the guy's smartphone, it seems most unlikely that a person's tweet could be connected to you as you are entering a POE.

Everything you say in cyberspace is monitored, every email is screened, every tweet, every picture you post online, EVERYTHING!!! The only difference between the USA and countries that censor is in a censored country your screened tweet would have been blocked so noone else could see it, in America your tweet can land you in jail. Land of Freedom of Speech, what a joke.

[Nica_In_Love 98]

More here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16810312

[Ban Hammer 13,554]

You don't think our Homeland Security and other agencies have a massive list of suspect phrases that are immediately detected in emails, texts, tweets, FB statuses?

With "Destroy America" being one on the list?

guess who just came to their attention?

[IR5FORMUMSIE 850]

guess who just came to their attention?

Osama bin Laden? Alger Hiss? Benedict Arnold?

Edited January 31, 2012 by IR5FORMUMSIE

[X Factor 1,112]

We now live in a world you can't even make a joke because it has serious implications.