The Indiana Attorney General's office recently issued a news release in which the attorney general teamed up with the Indiana State Department of Health to warn Hoosiers of retailers selling fraudulent, unapproved or useless H1N1 influenza remedies or medicines on the Internet.

In the release, Attorney General Greg Zoeller and the Department of Health urge Hoosiers to avoid the products and instead to practice good hand-washing hygiene and receive the approved swine flu vaccine from local health departments or their physicians.

The Attorney General indicates that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has put together a long list of fraudulent products, which includes such things as sprays, shampoos, herbal supplements, masks and air filters. 

Also of concern are Internet pharmacies selling so-called "generic" Tamiflu. The Attorney General cautions that no generic version of Tamiflu exists, and such medications offered online have not been FDA-approved for effectiveness and purity -- and might not be Tamiflu at all.

Urging Hoosiers not to let themselves be duped by "snake-oil salesmen who would empty their wallets, not treat a virus," the attorney general reminds Hoosiers that the exploitation of the H1N1 influenza virus fear by scam artists, not only creates a false sense of security, but leads to distribution of products which are actually ineffective and potentially dangerous.

The full news release and the Food & Drug Administration's list of fraudulent products are available online at http://www.in.gov/attorneygeneral/press (news release of Oct. 27.)

- Joseph Pellicciotti is a lawyer, professor, and vice chancellor at Indiana University Northwest.