Search engines, e-commerce firms asked to help root out fake vendors The China Food and Drug Administration and four other State-level departments plan to crack down on illegal online drugstores and similar channels in a move to regulate online medicine sales. It said on Tuesday it will cooperate with the State Internet Information Office, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security, and the State Administration for Industry and Commerce to root out illegal online sales of medicine, especially fake drugs. The most common fake cures are claimed to treat diseases such as cancer, diabetes, coronary heart disease, hypertension and sexual dysfunction, so those kinds of medicine will get special attention, according to the administration. The food and drug administration asked search engines and e-commerce companies to detect such violations, compile a list of those responsible and report them to medical supervision authorities. The administration's complaints center and the China Internet Illegal Information Reporting Center will also take consumer complaints about illegal online drug sales. People can dial 12331 or 12377 to report such complaints. Internet management authorities will locate the vendors concerned and tell local governments to investigate their businesses. Search engines and e-commerce companies should also rearrange the order in which search results are displayed by putting qualified online drug stores up top, and blocking or eliminating links to websites suspected of illegally selling medicines. The administration has approved the operation of 95 online drugstores, which hold Certificates of Online Medicine Trade Service, allowing medical authorities to trace their business records, administration spokeswoman Yan Jiangying said at a news conference in July. "The first thing for anyone going to buy medicines online is to check if the store has a Certificate of Online Medicine Trade Service," she said.