John Merchant, CPA, CFE

The Federal Bureau of Investigation warns that anyone purchasing prescription drugs over the Internet faces an increasingly high probability that they will be the victims of fraud.  Internet sales of counterfeit or ineffective drugs has become big business over the past two years and has now become the focus of international efforts to curtail the activities of scam artists who have found a new and very effective way to make money at the expense of innocent victims.

While some Internet pharmacies are legitimate, many are not and those who run the fraudulent web sites are often filling prescriptions with products that either are not the drugs that they are advertised to be or were the actual drugs before being diluted or allowed to pass their expiration date.  The health risks associated with such products are obvious.

The FBI suggests that consumers be extremely cautious when purchasing prescription drugs over the Internet and offers tips to those who do.  For more information, visit http://www.fbi.gov/majcases/fraud/seniorsfam.htm#cpd.