Action against sales of online pharmaceutical products

The Health Ministry (KKM) has taken action against 244 websites and 197 social media pages in the country to cripple the sales of dubious drugs and health products online.

Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said action was taken after monitoring online sites and carrying out investigations since products sold were manufactured by unregistered pharmaceutical companies, laced with poison and cosmetic products without notification.

"The ministry had forwarded the list of the companies or products to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission and Facebook so that their respective sites would be closed down," he said in a statement here Tuesday.

Dr Noor Hisham said the success was attributed to a joint-operation between the ministry, the Royal Malaysian Customs, Royal Malaysia Police and cybersecurity Malaysia in conjunction with an international operation, dubbed Operations Pangea IX, carried out from May 30 to June 7.

"The operation, coordinated by the Interpol, focused on websites that offered dangerous drugs and the internet-based enforcement was the largest of its kind," he said, adding that 193 enforcement agencies from 103 countries took part in the operation.

Dr Noor Hisham said checks had been conducted at all entry points in the country involving mail and courier centres, airports, border control posts, ferry terminals and others.

"A total of 26,949 packages and 266 premises were checked. Of the number, some 707 mail and courier packages worth RM1.3 million were seized," he said.

Among the main products in the seized packages were sex stimulants, body slimming products, drugs for abortion, cosmetics and traditional medicine products laced with poison. Most of these products were not registered with KKM, he said.

Dr Noor Hisham also said 93 premises that sold pharmaceutical products in the country via online methods were raided and 1,228 products estimated to be worth RM2.14 million were seized.

Meanwhile, Dr Noor Hisham said the ministry's Pharmaceutical Enforcement Division would develop its own Cyber Forensic Laboratory to expand investigations and analyse cases on pharmaceutical cyber activities in order to be turned into evidence for prosecution.

"KKM warns all online drugs sellers to adhere to the existing laws to avoid action being taken against them. The selling of drugs in virtual reality does not mean they can escape from the law," he said.