Gone are the days when you have to wait in queues at your local pharmacies to purchase medicines. There are dozens of websites springing up that provide you with the same medicines and deliver them at your doorstep. All you have to do is provide them with a prescription and you can sit back while they bring over your medicines.
Though it sounds quite simple, you will need to be careful while you purchase medicines online as there is quite a good number of fraudulent websites present on the net. Below is a guide to ensure that you purchase medicines from a secure website.
Signs that a website is genuine:
The first thing when buying medicines online is to make sure that a website is legit. Here are some ways in which you can ensure that a website is secure enough to purchase medicines:
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Look out for registration logos
Any website which is selling drugs legally will have no problem proving it. Look out for logos of legal outfits that are supposed to grant websites permission for selling drugs online. These logos include a GPhC logo and an MHRA logo. If you cannot find these logos displayed on the website, there is a high possibility that it is not safe and is perhaps not even legal. Refrain from buying medicines from such websites.
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Check if it asks enough questions
Any genuine website will ask you several questions about your health condition and your personal details before you can purchase drugs online. While it may wary you, these questions are important. If you observe that a site is allowing you to purchase drugs without asking you any questions, avoid buying from that website.
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A prescription must be demanded
Genuine online pharmacies will make sure that you upload your prescription before you purchase medicines from them. If you fail to do so, your order will not be accepted and they will not send your medicines. In case you see a website accepting orders without asking for a valid doctor’s prescription, something shady is going on and you should never buy from such a website.
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They must be contactable
This is a pretty basic point. Any legitimate website will have a contact number you can use to get in touch with them if you have any queries or need a support of any kind. If there is an absence of such contact information, you must not continue a transaction from that particular portal.
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The payment system is secured
A genuine website will have a safe payment system that will be encrypted. A padlock sign in the URL will indicate that the system is secure and if the sign is missing, don’t follow ahead.
What are the risks of buying medicines from websites that are not authorized?
If you are buying medicines from unauthorized online pharmacies, you are risking your health. They may not send you proper medicines or medicines that are expired or not in good condition. Consumption of these medicines can do more damage than benefit. Counterfeit medicines contain harmful substances that can pose a threat to your wellbeing and their prolonged use might give rise to certain complications that could be fatal for you. Moreover, when purchasing from an unlicensed website, you will also be risking your financial and personal details. There are high chances that these websites are fraudulent and will use the details you provide them to steal money from your accounts or from other unpleasant activities.
If there is even a shred of doubt in your mind that the website is not genuine, don’t purchase from it and instead visit a website that is legal and is recommended by your doctor and experts.
Is it actually safe to buy medicines online?
Many people ask this question as buying medicines online is still a developing trend and many people habituated of buying from the local pharmacies are unsure of the quality of medicines that will be delivered to them if they order online. However, we can assure you that though there are some fraudulent websites out there, you will be able to spot the genuine ones and purchasing from them is completely safe with literally no threat to your health and well-being.
Make sure that you follow this guide whenever you decide to purchase medicines online because as it’s said, health is wealth and you should not be careless when the discussion is about the most valuable wealth!