Amazon advertisers cited for falsely claiming CBD oil, other items cure coronavirus
Websites made false claims about how to cure the coronavirus with products like CBD oil, grapefruit seed oil or colloidal silver, then made money by pointing consumers to products listed on Amazon, according to the Food and Drug Administration.
The FDA and the Federal Trade Commission sent warning letters to four companies this week for allegedly lying to customers and hocking fake treatments for COVID-19.
“There are currently no FDA-approved products to prevent or treat COVID-19,” the agency said.
The companies were all part of the Amazon Associate program, according to the FDA, which means they were able to earn sales commission by directing consumers to buy specific products from Amazon.
The FDA accused CBD Gaze, a company based in Puerto Rico, of using its website to push CBD oil and supplements “with claims on your website representing or implying that the products can mitigate, prevent, treat, diagnose, or cure COVID-19.” The CBD Gaze website has since been taken down.
Alternavita, the second company, is accused of “promoting the sale of grapefruit seed extract, colostrum, and cod liver oil products” to cure the virus. As of Thursday, the company still listed grapefruit seed extract on its list of “proven ways to protect yourself against corornavirus.”
The warning letters were sent Tuesday and gave the companies 48 hours to take down the false claims, the FDA said.
The third company is Musthavemom.com, which is accused of promoting several fake cures for coronavirus, “including colloidal silver, vitamins, minerals, herb oils and a homeopathic drug product,” according to the FDA. The claims about COVID-19 cures appear to have been taken down from the website.
The last company, Careful Cents LLC, is accused promoting the sale of essential oil products to prevent or treat coronavirus, the FDA said. The company runs a website called “A Beginners Guide to Essential Oils,” according to the FDA.
A federal judge this week also gave the FDA a victory in court and stopped a company from selling colloidal silver products as a coronavirus cure.
“A judge in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma entered a preliminary injunction against Xephyr LLC, doing business as N-Ergetics, and individual defendants Brad Brand, Derill J. Fussell and Linda Fussell. The injunction requires Xephyr and the associated individuals to, among other things, immediately stop distributing colloidal silver products,” the FDA said.
This story was originally published May 28, 2020 at 2:25 PM with the headline "Amazon advertisers cited for falsely claiming CBD oil, other items cure coronavirus."
