Can your social media posts stop you getting into the United States?

“If in doubt, just wipe it,” said Caro Kinsella, a Limerick-born US immigration specialist who advises people on how to deal with heightened US border security patrol.

“Jokes are a really big one. You might be messing around with your friends and think it’s harmless.

“You might have completely forgotten about it. But officers are looking for key words and their algorithms are very advanced.”

The expert advice comes after US authorities have instructed immigration officials to check visa applicants’ online posts for “any indications of hostility toward the citizens, culture, government, ­institutions or founding principles of the United States”.

Ms Kinsella said that “many” of her Irish clients have experienced problems at border security over jokes discovered within their phone, messaging apps or social media feeds. She also said that references to drugs, even when joking, can be detected, using systems and processes to interrogate the phones, laptops or tablets.

“They have every right to request full access to all of your electronic devices,” she said.

“They will ask you to hand over your phone, your laptop, your iPad and other electronic devices.

“There and then, they will ask you for access and they will pull up the information immediately or go away with your electronic device and maybe call you into a back room.