FDA: Beware Buying Prescription Drugs Online
Two University of California, San Diego medical researchers showed ABC News how they set up their own fake drug store using search engines, Facebook and Twitter to draw potential buyers, and no pharmaceutical degree or any medical license, is required to set up any of these websites.
Timothy Mackey, a doctoral student in the joint doctoral program between San Diego State University and the University of California, San Diego created a fake pharmacy in less than 15 minutes and for less than $80.
"We basically created a Web app which is very descriptive and has a medical professional, a picture of a person that we just purchased, and we were able to post it online without any verification or requirements at all," Mackey said.
A hit-and-run pharmacy is lightning fast to start and even faster to disappear -- all before authorities can catch up.
"The bad guys know when they're getting chased, so they just shut down with a minute, and then literally within another hour they've set themselves right back up again," said Brian Liang, head of the Center for Patient Safety at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine. "What it's telling us is that there's clearly no enforcement, and Facebook and others in this space are making money off of illicit drug sales."
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