Report: Illegal drug sales on the web are on the rise

By Staff Writer

DrugFree.org reports that nearly one in five teens in the U.S. abuses prescription medications in order to get high.

While many adolescents purchase controlled medication from their peers, steal pills from their parents or get prescriptions from their doctors, there is an increasing trend of buying prescription medication online. The Partnership at DrugFree.org reported that 36 million Americans are exposed to advertisements or marketing strategies for illegal online drug providers.

The Partnership recently presented this information at the White House Intellectual Property Health and Safety Forum. The group's research was funded by the Alliance for Safe Online Pharmacies. Several major companies, such as American Express, Google and Microsoft, have come together to form a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to improving public health by targeting these online drug dealers.

Unlike state-licensed pharmacies, which sell only Federal Drug Administration-approved medication if the buyer has a prescription, these online sellers pose as legitimate websites, but sell pills - sometimes counterfeit - without a doctor's order. These dealers make it easy for people who have a legitimate prescription to obtain fake and potentially dangerous products.

Furthermore, it allows troubled teens who are searching for drugs to use recreationally to purchase these potentially addictive and life-threatening substances without having to leave their homes.