FDA: Online drug buyers get fake warnings

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers about criminals forging FDA warning letters to target individuals who tried to purchase medicines online or over the phone.

Some of the letters threatened legal action.

Based on the agency’s experience with criminals posing as FDA employees, the agency is concerned that these fake warning letters are linked to an international extortion scam. The FDA generally does not issue warning letters to individuals who purchase medicines online.

“While warning letters are a common compliance tool used by the FDA, we typically send them directly to companies and individuals involved in the manufacturing or distribution of FDA-regulated products,” said FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb in a release.

These fake warning letters, purporting to be from the FDA or the FDA and the Federal Trade Commission, claim the agency has determined there are drug violations based on a review of their parcel and social media accounts. The letters are addressed generally to a “Sir/Ma’am,” but in some instances may include a specific name. The letters also warn consumers that “we are still investigating the root of this delivery & necessary legal steps will be taken if we found (sic) out any suspicious activity on your end.”

“Consumers who aren’t involved in manufacturing or distributing FDA regulated products should be on alert that if you get an FDA warning letter, it’s probably fake, and probably a scam,” the FDA warned. “We know the confusion and concern that these fake warning letters may cause and want to assure consumers that we generally don’t take action against individuals for purchasing a medicine online, though we regularly take action against the owners and operators of illegal websites.”

Besides the scams, the FDA says, “consumers who buy medicines from illegal online pharmacies may be putting their health at risk. The products purchased from illegal online pharmacies, while marketed as authentic, may be counterfeit, contaminated, expired or otherwise unsafe.”

“Most illegal online pharmacies lack adequate safeguards to protect personal and financial information and some intentionally misuse consumers’ information. These websites may infect computers with viruses or sell consumers’ personal information to other illegal websites and internet scams. If a consumer buys medicine from an illegal online pharmacy, they also risk being harassed by repeated emails and phone calls or being charged for products they never ordered or received,” the FDA says.