According to The Alliance for Safe Online Pharmacy in the EU (ASOP EU), the illegal manufacturing and distribution of fake medicines is an enormous and growing public health risk with an untold cost to lives.

"Vast profits are made by organised criminal gangs who often use the proceeds to support other criminal activities. The internet provides the ideal channel to buy illegally distributed fake medicines. Price, convenience and secrecy have driven consumer demand, creating the perfect environment for over 35,000 illegally operating websites."

Under article 85d of the Falsified Medicines Directive, each EU member state is obliged to raise awareness about the risks of buying medicines online.

To better understand how countries are meeting these obligations to educate and protect consumers, the European Union’s Alliance for Safe Online Pharmacy (ASOP EU) and the European Alliance for Access to Safe Medicines (EAASM), has convened a series of discussions with many member states.

Based on these meetings, ASOP EU and EAASM issued a report, “Fighting fakes by member states – Falsified Medicines and the Common Logo – Raising Public Awareness.”

The report provides a detailed snapshot of the progress each EU member state has made to educate the public about the risks of buying medicines on the internet.