‘A game of chance’: Migrants battle glitchy app at US border

Venezuelan migrants browse the CBP One mobile app searching for an appointment to enter the United States outside the temporary stay of the National Migration Institute (INM) in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua state, Mexico. — AFP

CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico: The fate of tens of thousands of people seeking asylum at the United States’ southern border will, from Friday, hinge on an app that has just 2.5 stars in the App Store.

For immigration managers, a sleek, computerised way to manage the wave of people expected to arrive when Covid-era rules lapse must have been tempting.