Evaluating Aspects of Online Medication Safety in Long-Term Follow-Up of 136 Internet Pharmacies: Illegal Rogue Online Pharmacies Flourish and Are Long-Lived

Abstract

Most Internet pharmacies in our study sample were illegal sites within the definition of "rogue" Internet pharmacy. These websites violate professional, legal, and ethical standards and endanger patient safety. This work shows evidence that online pharmacies that act illegally appear to have greater longevity than others, presumably because there is no compelling reason for frequent change in order to survive. We also found that one in five websites revived (closed down and reopened again within four years) and no-prescription sites with limited medicine and patient information are flourishing.