Illegal Online Pharmacies Still Advertise on Facebook
/By Pat Anson, PNN Editor
At least two illegal online pharmacies are advertising on Facebook, offering to sell opioids and other controlled substances to people without a prescription and without visiting a doctor. The ads appear to be a direct violation of Facebook’s own policies and may be illegal.
“29 common medications, delivered fast and privately. No prescription required,” says one ad displaying an image of Adderall and Xanax tablets.
“Don’t leave your home, stay safe with us,” says another ad offering to sell Xanax. “Get our delivery services and we will have everything you need.”
Of course, there’s nothing “safe” about the sale of medication – real or counterfeit -- by sketchy companies over the internet.
In addition to Adderall and Xanax, Canadian Online Pharmacy and BestPharm also offer home delivery of opioids, muscle relaxers, weight loss, anti-anxiety, and erectile dysfunction drugs – many of them brand name medications sold at inflated prices.
I was surprised to see the ads in my Facebook feed. I’ve been covering pain management for over a decade and frequently interact with PNN readers over Facebook, so it’s likely the ads are using Facebook algorithms and user history to selectively target me and my readers – many of them chronically ill -- even though Facebook and its parent company Meta have strict policies about pharmaceutical advertising.
“Promoting prescription drugs is not allowed without prior written permission from Meta,” Facebook states on its website, directing advertisers to an online application form that requires they first be registered and certified by LegitScript. Facebook and other e-commerce platforms use LegitScript to make sure they’re doing business with reputable companies that can pay them for advertising.
However, unlike other internet companies, Facebook does not use LegitScript to proactively monitor and screen ads to make sure they don’t promote questionable products or engage in illicit activity.
If they did, they would quickly learn that LegitScript classifies Canadian Online Pharmacy as a “rogue” pharmacy that uses fraudulent or deceptive business practices.
“LegitScript has reviewed this Internet pharmacy and determined that it does not meet LegitScript Internet pharmacy verification standards,” LegitScript states on a webpage that anyone can use to check the URLs of online pharmacies to see if they are legitimate.
“Additionally, LegitScript has determined that this pharmacy website meets our definition of a Rogue Internet Pharmacy.”
BESTPHARM FACEBOOK AD
BestPharm isn’t even listed in LegitScript’s database, which means Facebook shouldn’t be running their ads, according to its own policies.
Facebook and Meta did not respond to requests from PNN for comment on this story.
“Facebook has a role to play in enforcing their advertising policy and, in this case, their policy is not meeting their own expectations,” says Libby Baney, senior advisor to the Alliance for Safe Online Pharmacies, a trade group that estimates there are 35,000 active online pharmacies worldwide, about 95% of them operating illegally or engaged in fraud.
“A number of years ago, the social media platforms were admonished by the FDA to try to do more to prevent this type of advertising or content to consumers. And many, including Facebook, made commitments or pledges to government and public health officials to do more to screen their ads for this type of content,” Baney told PNN.
“I was quite surprised actually to see how blatant the advertisements were that you found and I don't have a real explanation for it, other than they’re falling through the cracks of the advertising policy standards that many of these companies, including Facebook, have in place.”
‘How Can This Be Legal?’
Fortunately, many Facebook users who saw the same ads I did questioned whether the pharmacies are legitimate. They showed their skepticism in the comment section of the ads.
“Xanax being promoted on Facebook? Profits must be low,” wrote one poster who saw an ad that featured a hand holding about 20 Xanax tablets.
“Wow, that’s enough to sedate an entire neighborhood. Way to make yourselves look legit, LOL!” said another poster.
“Your Prices are INSANE.......... cheaper to buy from the dude slinging drugs on the corner,” wrote another Facebook poster.
“How can this be legal?” asked another.
Remember, these ads are deliberately targeting people with chronic pain and other illnesses, who often have trouble getting their medications. There are currently record shortages of prescription drugs and many pharmacies are out of stock or rationing medications in short supply.
CANADIAN ONLINE PHARMACY FACEBOOK AD
In a recent PNN survey, 90% of patients with an opioid prescription said they had trouble getting it filled.
Desperate people do desperate things. We’ll never know many Facebook users clicked the button to “Learn more,” which takes them directly to the advertiser’s website where they can place an order for drugs.
“It could be a total scam, meaning your credit card and personal information are stolen. Or it could be a partial scam that could endanger your health, which is you get something dangerous laced with fentanyl,” says Baney. “You're putting your life in the hands of some anonymous advertiser on the internet.”
‘No Prescriptions Needed’
A close look at an online pharmacy’s website may provide a clue to their legitimacy. Canadian Online Pharmacy, for example, bills itself as an “international” pharmacy that ships medications around the world.
“Your Global Source for Quality Medicines! No prescriptions needed, no awkward doctor visits! Enjoy convenience, privacy, and savings on top-notch medications, all delivered to your doorstep,” the website claims.
Where is the Canadian Online Pharmacy based? The company lists an address in Wheeling, West Virginia that is shared with dozens of other online companies, selling everything from pillows and audio equipment to cameras and pizza. The telephone that’s listed has a Washington DC area code.
BestPharm doesn’t provide a physical address or telephone number, but does share the names and pictures of several people who supposedly run the company in its “About Us” section. Their names and images appear to be fictitious or stolen off the internet.
The picture for Chief Operating Officer Jessica Pearson, for example, is the same one used by over a dozen other women online, only their names are Emma, Emily and Ella.
Emma is particularly notable. Her Linkedin page claims she works for Google on special projects involving artificial intelligence, and that she’s a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she studied “the toggled self-assembly of colloidal suspensions in binary systems.”
BESTPHARM
All of this might be funny, if it wasn’t for the fact that people are getting ripped off and risking their lives by buying drugs from fake pharmacies.
“I hear about these types of incidents or patient experiences from parents who've lost loved ones, who have purchased counterfeit products online after seeing ads that are clearly in violation of U.S. law,” Baney said.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Meta is under investigation by federal prosecutors for its role in the illicit sale of drugs online. A grand jury has been convened to look into whether the company’s social-media platforms are facilitating and profiting from illicit drug sales. No criminal charges have been filed.
“The sale of illicit drugs is against our policies and we work to find and remove this content from our services,” a spokesman for Meta said in a statement to the newspaper.
‘When Are You Going to Take Down These Posts?’
In 2018, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg was grilled during a congressional hearing about Facebook publishing posts and ads for illegal online pharmacies.
“Your platform is still being used to circumvent the law, and allow people to buy highly addictive drugs without a prescription,” said Rep. David McKinley (R-WV). “When are you going to take down these posts that are done with illegal, digital pharmacies?”
“Right now when people report the posts to us, we will take them down and have people review,” Zuckerberg replied. “I agree that this is a terrible issue, and respectfully, when there are tens of billion pieces of content that are shared every day, even 20,000 people reviewing it can’t look at everything.”
Six years have passed and illegal online pharmacies are still advertising on Facebook. The company heavily relies on artificial intelligence (AI) to screen the millions of advertisements it runs every year.
But clever advertisers find ways to outsmart AI. There’s even a tutorial on YouTube to help cannabis companies get around Facebook restrictions on cannabis advertising. The key is to avoid using certain keywords like “THC” or getting “high,” which could get an ad rejected by AI. It’s better to use emojis, images and vague terms to get your point across.
“The goal is not to try to break the rules, but to see where you can bend the rules. Be a little bit creative,” says Aaron Nosbisch, CEO and Founder of Brez, a cannabis-infused drink.
“My ads are saying you’ll experience euphoria, feelings of relief, and be a great alternative to alcohol. Promote the ideas of what the products do for people (without mentioning) THC and CBD. People are looking to feel good. People are looking to have a good night and have a good time. Sell that.”
What can Facebook do to stop advertisers from exploiting cracks in its screening system?
“Enforce their own policy,” says Baney. “We look forward to Facebook addressing these issues that they've committed to in public forums with government officials.”
