https://tboteproject.com/
"This investigation documents a national lobbying operation spanning corporate
spending, think tank infrastructure, dark money networks, and competing model
legislation templates. Meta spent a record $26.3 million on federal lobbying in
2025, deployed 86+ lobbyists across 45 states, and covertly funded a group
called the Digital Childhood Alliance (DCA) to advocate for the App Store
Accountability Act (ASAA). But the operation extends beyond Meta.
The Heritage Foundation funds three of six named DCA coalition organizations,
staffs the advocacy pipeline from Capitol Hill to state legislatures, and has
merged leadership with another coalition member. A competing model bill
(ICMEC’s DAAA) takes a different approach, creating a two-track legislative
landscape where both tracks shift regulatory burden away from social media
platforms. Snap, X, and Pinterest have joined Meta in supporting ASAA. Every
confirmed supporter is a social media platform; every opponent operates an app
store.
This investigation traced funding flows across five confirmed channels,
analyzed $2.0 billion in dark money grants, searched 59,736 DAF recipients,
parsed LD-2 filings, and mapped campaign contributions across four states to
document the operation.
The pattern extends internationally. Meta spends EUR 10 million annually on EU
lobbying (the largest single company spend), retains 18+ consulting firms
across jurisdictions, and uses at least three firms operating in both Brussels
and Washington. In Brazil, Meta appeared at legislative hearings for PL
2628/2022, though Brazil’s resulting law placed the burden on platforms
directly. ICMEC, which authored the competing DAAA model legislation aligned
with Meta’s interests, operates under severe financial distress with Meta as a
confirmed major donor. Over 30 jurisdictions introduced age verification bills
within an 18-month window.
Every finding is sourced from public records: IRS 990 filings, Senate LD-2
lobbying disclosures, state and EU lobbying registrations, campaign finance
databases, corporate registries, WHOIS/DNS records, charity filings, and
investigative journalism."
Via Violet Blue’s
Threat Model - Cybersecurity: March 17, 2026
https://www.patreon.com/posts/cybersecurity-17-153242517
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
