Victorian Liberal MP Nicole Werner has questioned the integrity of Premier Jacinta Allan’s social media following after a sudden surge of tens of thousands of new Instagram followers, raising concerns about whether automated “bot” accounts were used to inflate the Premier’s online popularity.

Werner said the spike raised broader questions about transparency and public trust in political leadership, arguing Victorians expected honesty from those in government.

She questioned why the Premier appeared focused on social media metrics amid ongoing scrutiny over major public spending, asking whether attention was being diverted from issues such as billions lost through alleged wrongdoing on government worksites.

Victorian Opposition Leader Jess Wilson also called on the government to confirm that no taxpayer funds had been used to purchase followers.

She rejected suggestions that the Liberal Party may have been responsible for the sudden increase, describing the claim as “laughable” and “an insult to Victorians”.

The controversy follows analysis reported by the Herald Sun suggesting more than 90,000 followers added to the Premier’s account over several days were likely linked to foreign bot networks.

The analysis, based on data from web-scraping service Apify, indicated the followers may have been purchased for as little as a few hundred dollars.

The spike began late last week when the Premier’s account jumped from about 34,500 followers to more than 88,000 in a single day — an increase of 53,471. A further rise of more than 38,000 accounts was recorded days later.

Researchers analysing the activity said the accounts appeared to originate overseas. Dominique Carlon, a research fellow in inclusive artificial intelligence at Swinburne University of Technology, told the Herald Sun that the accounts most likely involved so-called “fame enhancer bots”, automated profiles designed to artificially inflate a user’s perceived popularity online.

The unusual activity has also attracted attention in the media. Jacqui Felgate, host of the Drive program on 3AW, told listeners she had never seen such a dramatic increase in followers on a political account.

Felgate claimed that the Premier’s page gained 53,471 followers in a single day, raising questions about whether the growth came from purchased followers or a coordinated bot attack targeting the account. “I’ve never seen this happen,” she said, describing the situation as a “mystery, potentially a taxpayer-funded mystery”.

Technology commentator Leigh Stark told the program that while bot attacks can occur when automated accounts flood a page in an attempt to trigger moderation penalties, it was unlikely that the Premier’s account had been targeted in that way.

The surge has also prompted political responses across the Victorian Parliament.

Crossbench MP David Limbrick told SkyNews that the incident should be examined more closely, suggesting authorities should determine whether the activity could be linked to foreign influence operations.

He said either a bot network had been used to artificially boost the Premier’s follower count or another actor had targeted the account, arguing both possibilities warranted investigation.

Premier Allan has denied any involvement. Speaking to reporters, the Premier said neither she nor her office had purchased followers and that the issue had been raised with the platform.

“This is nonsense. I’m focused on people, not bots,” she said, adding that no public money had been spent on the account.

A government spokesperson said the surge could potentially be the result of a political “dirty tricks” campaign designed to trigger restrictions on the account.

Parent company Meta Platforms prohibits the purchase of followers on Instagram and Facebook, and accounts found manipulating engagement can face penalties or suspension.

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