And many of these seekers want more than just information. In such a demand-swelling market, new entrants appear like mold. Meanwhile, regulators have a hard time finding the original spore, the brick and mortar base of an online store. Pharmagroup's site resembles bigger pharmacy sites, with shiny blue-green graphics, photos of drugs in what appear to be original boxes and friendly guarantees of quality and service. Names, addresses and phone numbers are conspicuously absent.
Many sites disappear before they can be prosecuted.
Others have learned to give black screens when regulators log on to their sites. A site in Arizona selling to 40 other states may not be something officials in Arizona care about. And officials in the 40 other states may have no way to get at it. You need a law that fits the crime, and current law does not fit the crime. Federal oversight, but especially financial punishment that amounts to more than a bruise, will help eliminate many of these structural problems, Catizone says.