Websites claiming to sell pharmaceuticals without need of prescriptions are popping up in the thousands.

They are part of a scam phenomenon known as pharma fraud, taking aim at bank accounts globally, and capitalising on the shame that surrounds certain medications.

Pills for erectile disfunction, premature ejaculation, male pattern balding, weight loss and bodybuilding are among the medications splashed on the front page of these sites, many of which are directly targeting Australians.

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Of the 5000 sites globally detected by cyber security company Avast, 41 per cent of the medications were targeting men’s sexual health.

In the first half of this year alone, Avast blocked 21,000 attacks on Australians.

But for those without protective software, which knows these websites and flags them to users, it can be hard to detect that the website is not legitimate, Avast cyber security expert Stephen Kho told www.20304050.best.

A new development in artificial intelligence, known as “vibe coding” has made it easier than ever for scammers to pump out dozens of dodgy websites a day.

The thousands of pharma fraud sites Avast is aware of were likely created by just a few groups of scammers, Kho said.

The same technology also makes it harder to distinguish the sites as fakes.

“You can literally talk to an AI chatbot and say, create me a website with a checkout and this kind of wording, for this kind of product, to sell in this colour, and add these features — and it will produce it,” Kho said.

“You can test it, tweak it and deploy it, and suddenly you’ve got a URL”.

Kho said that many pharma fraud sites are made with Australian URLs, display Australian currency, and promote shipping to Australian locations, including one still-operational website which www.20304050.best has sighted, but will not make public for safety reasons.

“Some websites look like they are Australian, but are actually located and distributing goods from overseas,” the Therapeutic Health Administration (TGA) said.

“It is so hard to pick these days, it used to be that dodgy spelling made it easy to pick, but nowadays things look glossy and professional and the grammar is good,” Kho said.

Like many scams, he says they use “emotional triggers or a sense of urgency”.

Because taboo products are increasingly being made available online, and legitimate sites like Temu “are also using these urgency tactics”, Kho said there is now an additional layer of difficulty to discerning a fake website.

Sometimes it is safer to avoid anything that rings alarm bells.

“Look at what regulations we have in Australia, pharmaceuticals are heavily regulated, so that should be ringing alarm bells,” Kho said.

“If a site is not asking for prescriptions, that is clearly dodgy, because you’re bypassing it from a safety perspective, but also there can be money lost.”

‘Diluted, contaminated, or even just chalk’

Kho said that these scam websites can simply take a customer’s money and send nothing in return, or they can jeopardise safety by sending unregulated products.

The TGA said fake medicine “could be diluted, contaminated, or even just chalk”.

“Anyone that is willing to break the law to take your money could also be willing to cheat you or risk your health.”

Almost a decade ago, The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimated the global annual death toll from counterfeit drugs was about a million.

The Australian Federal Police released a warning in May after counterfeit pain relief in NSW, Queensland, Victoria, and the ACT were found to contain synthetic opioids 10 times more potent than fentanyl.

Risk of overdose is not the only danger — contamination-related reactions, or simply a lack of protection from nonactive ingredients, all put consumers of counterfeit drugs at risk.

“In the case of diluted antibiotics, understrength medicines contribute to antimicrobial resistance,” TGA said

And it can be hard to tell the difference — the image below, the top pill is a legitimate Pfizer product, while the bottom two are fake.

The dangerous money-saving measure could also be driving up the cost of legitimate medication.

“Companies spend a lot of money and resources fighting imitation medicines, which, in turn, may lead to higher costs for the consumer,” TGA said.

‘We’re falling for it’

For those hellbent on heading to the checkout on unfamiliar websites, Kho recommends doing a little bit of research first.

“If you get a link to a pharmacy site, instead of clicking on it, do a Google search for that site and first look at reviews,” he said.

Negative reviews slamming the site “is a good indication” it is dodgy.

Kho said that it is important that pharma fraud scams are discussed, because they will otherwise fly under the radar.

“Because of the taboo nature, people are probably not even reporting it,” he said

“There’s also that thing of buying something without a prescription and not wanted to report it to police for that reason.

“Scammers are really targeting the Australian population, and for whatever reason, we’re falling for it.

“We’re losing money, and we’re probably getting our credentials stolen.”