IN this age of fondness for quick fixes, it is common to hear of people falling prey to miracle remedies that claim to cure numerous illnesses and anomalies.
Susceptible to promises such as an ideal figure in a certain number of weeks without pain or exercise and complete recovery from fatal illnesses that are advertised in various medium, it is no wonder we often hear of casualties who are victims of illegal medication and unproven concoctions.

IN this age of fondness for quick fixes, it is common to hear of people falling prey to miracle remedies that claim to cure numerous illnesses and anomalies.
Susceptible to promises such as an ideal figure in a certain number of weeks without pain or exercise and complete recovery from fatal illnesses that are advertised in various medium, it is no wonder we often hear of casualties who are victims of illegal medication and unproven concoctions.
This eagerness to believe is often heightened by desperation in many cases and these are the opportunities that such perpetrators capitalise on. And this happens on the Internet too.
Symantec Corp in its State of Spam report for March 2008 found that health spam, which includes pharmaceuticals, medical treatments, and herbal remedies, currently comprise 38 per cent of all spam in the Asia- Pacific and Japan (APJ) region – a whopping 30 per cent increase since Nov 2007.
Compare this to financial spam which stands at seven per cent, having taken a nosedive by 26 per cent. The health spam figure has even outshadowed spams on scams (15 per cent) and adult spams (four per cent).
This, Symantec Malaysia’s general manager C.M. Woon said, goes to show that spammers are tailoring their attacks to capitalise on popular trends in specific regions. To counter, he said online users should be diligent in protecting themselves against these threats, and exercise caution in their online interactions.
A little bit of research and asking around as well as verification from the relevant authorities are all that it takes to stop from becoming victims. If not, the consequences may be detrimental to the health, wealth and overall personal well-being.