The Growing Problem of Counterfeit Pharmaceuticals

The International Narcotics Control Board has released its 2011 report.  It includes some interesting commentary on counterfeit pharmaceutical products.

According to the International Narcotics Control Board’s 2011 report released on 28 Feb 2012, over half of the drugs sold on illegal Internet pharmacies are counterfeit.

Illegal Internet pharmacies have started to use social media as well as spam email messages to get customers for their websites.

The report further explains that “Illegal Internet pharmacies use a number of methods to pretend to be legitimate pharmacies. The methods include providing quotes and images of purported medical doctors; and fraudulently  displaying a number of logos, including the logos of national pharmaceutical regulatory bodies”

This highlights the fact that counterfeiting has invaded almost all sectors of the economy, including pharmaceutical products and constitutes a real threat to consumers’ health and safety .