The Food and Drug Administration is warning people who have purchased drugs online about fraudsters posing as FDA agents or other law enforcement officials attempting to extort money.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said today it is partnering with medication information site Drugs.com to expand access to the FDA’s consumer health information.

Drugs.com is focused on providing people with information to better manage their own health care and to assist in reducing medical errors. The site attracts more than 12 million unique visitors each month.

The Center for Digital Democracy (CDD) has asked the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to investigate the online marketing and behavioral targeting practices of pharmaceutical companies.

The CDD says few U.S. health consumers are aware they are being identified, labeled, profiled, and tracked on the Internet while they search or access information on specific conditions or concerns.

The Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers about an unsafe, counterfeit version of the weight-loss drug Alli sold online.

FDA lab test found the counterfeit Alli has a different active ingredient, a stimulant found in prescription weight-loss drug. People using the fake Alli may be taking three times the usual daily dose of the stimulant if they are following the dosing directions for Alli.

The Food and Drug Administration is cracking down on 136 websites it says were selling illegal or misbranded drugs to U.S. consumers.

The FDA says none of the websites are for pharmacies in the United States or Canada.

The agency has sent 22 warning letters to the operators of these websites and notified Internet service providers and domain name registrars that the websites were selling products that violated U.S. law.

The Food and Drug Administration is alerting consumers not to purchase products on the Internet that fraudulently claim to cure cancer.

The FDA has sent warning letters to 23 U.S. companies, 1 Canadian, and 1 Australian company asking them to stop selling 125 products that claim to cure, treat or prevent cancer.

"Although promotions of bogus cancer ‘cures’ have always been a problem, the Internet has provided a mechanism for them to flourish," said Margaret O’K. Glavin, the FDA’s associate commissioner for regulatory affairs.

First thing’s first: I’m suspicious of the pharmaceutical industry in general. A lot of people are, but as a journalist, suspicion is part of the job. Also, I have the researcher’s tendency toward cyberchondriasis, so take my non-medical expertise for what it’s worth.

Which isn’t much. I put that out there so others won’t have to.