In a new report on fraudulent pharmaceutical sales, security firm Sophos is warning people to trust NHS and avoid the fear and panic induced over Swine Flu. According to the report, fear is driving sales of fake Tamiflu, and lining the pockets of criminals with cash and personal information, all for a product that likely doesn’t work.
Fake Tamiflu offering hits inboxes turning criminals into millionaires. (IMG:J.Anderson)
In a whitepaper entitled "The Partnerka – what is it, and why should you care”, Sophos looks at affiliate programs, called the Partnerka, and how they are profiting from false pharmaceutical sales.
Working inside a network alongside businesses running online pharmacies, the Partnerka generate traffic to those sites for an agreed share of the profit. Many of these pharmaceutical sites brand themselves as "Canadian Pharmacy" in order to appear as a more trusted website to unsuspecting internet users, Sophos says.
Although the precise number of affiliates is ever-changing, there could be thousands in operation at any one time. Sophos' research has discovered that on one affiliate network operated out of Russia, called Glavmed, it is possible to earn an average of $16,000 a day promoting pharmaceutical websites. That’s $5.8 million USD a year. However, the criminals can be members of more than one affiliate network, and some have boasted of earning more than $100,000 USD per day.
Fear and panic are what drives these sales. "As more and more cases of Swine Flu in the UK come to light, it is essential that we all resist the panic-induced temptation to purchase Tamiflu online," said Sophos’ Graham Cluley.
"The criminal gangs working behind the scenes at fake internet pharmacies are putting their customers’ health, personal information and credit card details at risk. They have no problem breaking the law to promote these websites, so you can be sure they’ll have no qualms in exploiting your confidential data or selling you medications which may put your life in danger. If you think you need medication contact your real doctor, and stay away from quacks on the internet."
The top five countries purchasing Tamiflu and other drugs from the Canadian Pharmacy are the United States, Germany, United Kingdom, Canada and France.
The whitepaper from Sophos is here. A report from The Tech Herald on Swine Flu is here.
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