Meta has been recruiting and paying parenting, lifestyle and mental health influencers to promote its teen safety tools whenever governments consider tighter regulation of children's social media use, according to a report by the Tech Transparency Project. The advocacy group's findings suggest the pattern emerged as a coordinated strategy: rather than lobbying directly against restrictions, Meta enlists trusted online voices to argue that outright bans are ineffective and that its existing parental controls already keep teenagers safe, a tactic seen most recently in Australia.

The report highlights a July 2025 event in Sydney, where Meta gathered Australian parenting influencers at an Instagram-branded gathering just months before the country's ban on under-16s using social media took effect in December 2025. Since 2024, Meta has used such events and sponsored posts to encourage creators with large followings to publicise its Teen Accounts, which impose extra restrictions on 13- to 17-year-olds, while also funding parent and research groups that oppose blanket bans. Tech Transparency Project director Katie Paul said the approach reflects public distrust of Meta itself, while the company said blanket bans push young people towards "less safe, unregulated corners of the internet" and stressed its commitment to parental safety features.