Senior drivers targeted in flood of fake online reports
Kate Atkinson |
While it’s usually shock jocks accused of winding up their audiences, this time it was a listener up and out of her seat.
The government was about to implement a night time curfew for all Australian drivers aged over 60, Linda advised.
“This is unbelievable,” she raged.
“How the hell are they getting away with this?”
Quick to assume the voice of reason, 2GB Sydney radio host Ben Fordham advised her to “take a chill pill”.
There was no substance to what she’d heard, he assured. It appeared to be the latest example of misinformation spreading online.
Indeed. It was fake news.
The claim was based on bogus articles targeting older drivers that were likely created using artificial intelligence.
“Over 60??? From 1 Oct 25 you are not permitted to drive between 10pm and 5.00am in Australia!!!” according to one Facebook post.
The caption shared a link to an article on a website called GK Spatios, supposedly written by a reporter named James Bair.
“The Australian government announced today adding a new traffic update: a night-driving restriction for drivers 60 and older,” it claims.
“This policy is focused on improving safety for older drivers, who are a group at elevated risk while driving at night. As of October 1, 2025, the law will apply to all states and territories.”
No further details or references are provided and at certain points the text is nonsensical.
A similar assertion appears in a Facebook video.
“I think it’s very important people are aware of the new level of government overreach they’re trying to bring in,” the man on screen says at one point.
A search for the text online leads to multiple articles written by James Bair on various websites with designs and branding identical to the GK Spatios site.
Among other absurdities, the reports suggest drivers over 70 could be prohibited from undertaking long or highway trips or risk $2200 fines for losing control of a vehicle while sneezing or for getting behind the wheel while wearing slippers.
Meanwhile, there are no credible reports or announcements from government regarding the night time curfew changes.
AAP FactCheck this week contacted the websites for evidence to support the claim but received no response.
A spokesperson for the federal transport department declared that it was incorrect and added that road and traffic laws were managed by the states and territories rather than anyone in Canberra.
Spokespeople for Transport NSW, the Victorian Department of Transport and Planning and Queensland Transport and Main Roads all told AAP FactCheck the claims were false.
In an online statement, the WA Department of Transport and Major Infrastructure specifically debunked the curfew reports before federal Transport Minister Catherine King also stepped in.
“I want you to hear it from me directly,” she announced via Facebook.
“We have not – and we will never – introduce a curfew for drivers over 60 years of age. It’s simply fake news.
“There’s a new misinformation campaign doing the rounds online designed to unsettle older Australians.”
Fake articles posted to websites are “flooding social media as hostile overseas actors work to break trust in our democratic institutions”, Ms King alleges.
Anyone who spots the like online, like 2GB listener Linda did, is being urged to report it.
For trusted information, motorists are advised that each state and territory has an official webpage on driving laws, including those featured at VicRoads, Transport for NSW and The Department of Transport and Main Roads in Queensland.
If other websites look dodgy, though, they probably are.
Investigations chief executive at Cybertrace, Dan Halpin, says the content carrying James Bair’s byline appears to be AI-generated and designed to attract attention and drive web traffic.
He says it is now common for AI “content farms” to produce such material on a massive scale.
“The challenge is that AI can generate huge volumes of content that look legitimate, making it far easier for false claims to spread and far harder for people to tell what’s real,” he says.
Mr Halpin warns the risks extend beyond commercial motives, with state actors increasingly capable of using the technology to manipulate political agendas
“In some cases, it’s not just about clicks and ad revenue, it’s about undermining trust in government or shaping political views,” he adds.
Toby Walsh, an expert in AI at the University of NSW, says the fake articles are designed to commoditise people’s attention.
“AI can generate fake content like this easily and cheaply that will attract eyeballs,” Professor Walsh says.
“And eyeballs equate to money.”
AAP
