How anti-vaxxers are using AI to try to dodge childcare vaccination laws and spread dangerous health advice
Facebook is teaching parents how to dodge vaccination laws and treat serious illnesses with honey and onions – see how much childhood immunisation rates have fallen.
Anti-vaxxers are using Facebook to teach parents how to get around “no jab, no play” laws for childcare by using AI to fake medical documents, and encouraging them to treat serious illnesses with honey and onions.
Some Facebook groups with tens of thousands of members across Australia feature multiple posts a day advocating against vaccines, which the authors falsely claim cause autism, brain damage and even sudden infant death syndrome.
The Advertiser has seen posts from parents sharing how to sneak unvaccinated kids into childcare centres by using artificial intelligence (AI) to generate fake medical certificates or by agreeing to immunisation schedules with no intention of going through with vaccination.
Many families using these services are eligible for the federal government child care subsidy, which can dramatically reduce out-of-pocket costs.
Services such as primary schools, after school care, occasional care, babysitting and playgroups are not covered by the vaccine requirements.
Exemptions can be granted in cases where a child is unable to have a vaccine for medial reasons, such as an allergic reaction, they have proven natural immunity or a vaccine is temporarily unavailable.
Similar laws apply in New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia and Victoria.
SA Education Minister Blair Boyer said he had not received reports of parents trying to falsely enrol unvaccinated children but it was “something we need to be live to and look out for”.
“The no jab, no play laws are in place to protect not just that individual child but also other children at the service,” he said.
“Parents who are considering using AI, or something like this, should be alert to the potential legal ramifications of fraudulently making a document and submitting it.”
SA opposition preventative health spokeswoman Penny Pratt said childcare centres and kindergartens “should be safe environments where parents can have confidence that all families are following the same rules”.
Adelaide parents Jill and David Elliot did not hesitate to vaccinate their daughters Kaylee, 6, and Astrid, 4.
“A lot of the vaccines, like for measles, mumps, rubella and polio, there is a very good evidence base for them,” said Mrs Elliot, 41, who works as an occupational therapist and has university qualifications in public health.
“It’s OK if you want to be anti-vaccines but you need to accept the consequences, that you can’t access childcare.
“Everyone I know, and am good friends with, has their children vaccinated.
“I would be quite concerned about people trying to avoid (the no jab, no play rule).”
The Advertiser’s examination of social media found parents are also turning to AI for medical advice and sharing misinformation.
In one Facebook group, which has more than 18,500 members, a user shared their conversation with a “very smart unchained” AI chatbot that falsely claimed vaccines cause autism by “overloading” your child’s brain.
Another asked ChatGPT if parents would be arrested if “vaccine ingredients were given as a meal and fed to a child” to which the chatbot replied “Yes.”
Many users also advocate natural remedies to treat potentially serious illnesses instead of medicine.
One mum suggested using garlic, onion and ginger in honey to treat the potentially deadly RSV in an anti-vaccination group with 27,000-plus members.
Another said she used elderberry syrup and vitamin C powder to treat her son’s whooping cough – another potentially fatal disease.
In a different post asking for help treating a baby with croup, one person suggested putting onions on the child’s feet to “help with congestion.”
“Also cut up around the house, not sure how old baby is but you can also cut up onion (or) put some honey with it, let it set and let baby have some every couple hours” they wrote.
Meta, which owns Facebook, has been contacted for a response.
Vaccination rates have been dropping across Australia since the Covid-19 pandemic due to growing distrust and misinformation, along with difficulty getting GP appointments or paying rising out-of-pocket cost.
Childhood vaccination coverage was increasing year-on-year for two decades before peaking in 2020 around 95 per cent, which is the national target, for children aged five.
However that trend has reversed and coverage declined to 92.7 per cent last year, according to federal Health Department data.
Vaccination rates for whooping cough have also declined across all childhood age groups in SA since 2020.
A spokesman for SA Health said “sharing misinformation from uncredited sources about any vaccine or medication can be dangerous and create unfounded fear”.
“Prevention is always better than a cure and research shows immunisation provides the best protection we can give ourselves and our loved ones against many infectious diseases,” he said.
He urged parents to consult “trusted, qualified and credentialed sources” for health information, including state and federal health departments, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) and the World Health Organisation (WHO).
“At a local level, your GP or usual immunisation provider is also a reliable source of information,” he said.
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Originally published as How anti-vaxxers are using AI to try to dodge childcare vaccination laws and spread dangerous health advice
