More than a minor daily irritation, dangerous medical spam is on the increase. It is not hard to see why. A recent survey in Network Computing claims that out of every 150 people who click on a spam drug email, one buys something. It may seem unbelievable, but it seems people are buying medication ranging from steroids to Viagra-type pills to anti-cholesterol statin drugs from spammers.
Speaking to the Times, Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at the UK computer security analysts Sophos, confirms that medical-spam levels are at an all-time high and that the blame can only rest with us. "People are buying things in response to being spammed. Just like junk mail, the spammers do it because it makes money. Recipients buy tablets for sexual performance, weight loss and body building."
The dangers of buying from spammers was highlighted last month when it emerged that a 64-year-old Sunderland woman was being treated for sight problems after taking steroid pills she had bought from a source in Thailand. Having diagnosed herself with chronic fatigue syndrome, the woman had taken prednisolone steroids for four years, causing her to develop cataracts and glaucoma.
Source: www.times.co.uk
Posted: 4th September 2006
