Mackey TK. (2018). Opioids and the internet: Convergence of technology and policy to address the illicit online sales of opioids. Health Services Insights. 11:1-6. doi: 10.1177/1178632818800995
The authors discuss the use of the internet to illegally sell opioids, describing past efforts to regulate online opioid sales and recent developments in these efforts, including the Food and Drug Administration’s Online Opioid Summit and Congressional testimonies from Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg. Online opioid sales have expanded to illegal online pharmacies, social media, and the dark web (websites not accessible by conventional web browsers). Some websites (e.g., Facebook, Google, Pinterest) have implemented measures to deter illegal purchase or sale of opioids over their platform (e.g., blocking or redirecting opioid-related search terms). Policymakers are increasing efforts to hold websites who host content facilitating illegal opioid sales (e.g., search listings for illegal pharmacies, social media posts from drug dealers) responsible. Representatives for these websites have cited several barriers to active monitoring of illegal opioid sales, including the resources required to identify and address illegal content, censorship concerns, and a lack of clarity over the legal responsibilities of websites to address illegal activity. One promising avenue to address illegal opioid sales on the internet, is using machine learning to detect and remove offending posts or listings, but a lack of coordination between different websites and law enforcement makes it difficult to meaningfully address illegal opioid sales. The authors suggest updating current legislation regulating the sale of controlled substances using the internet, implementing greater oversight of internet providers and websites that may facilitate the illegal opioid sales, and prosecuting internet providers and websites who do not take action against the illegal opioid sales.