Center for Safe Internet Pharmacies (CSIP) Launches

The Center for Safe Internet Pharmacies (CSIP) will launch with an event at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, July 23 at 5:00 p.m. CSIP will officially announce its partnership between multiple U.S. government agencies and several worldwide internet and e-commerce organizations. The goal of this collaborative effort is an extensive campaign to help educate consumers about the dangers of unsafe counterfeit or contaminated prescription drugs.  The campaign includes a website with information and tools for consumers and health care professionals, an awareness video, a social media presence, and educational search engine adds. 

The Center for Safe Internet Pharmacies is a nonprofit organization chartered in 2011 to help Internet industry leaders find a way to address the growing problem of consumer access to illegitimate pharmaceutical products on the Internet. The entities selling these “medicines” typically advertise and present themselves as pharmacies, which inspires consumer trust. The average consumer has no way to know whether the product he or she is purchasing is counterfeit or otherwise unsafe, and is therefore not only vulnerable to the dangers associated with these substances, but also often has little recourse.