Fake GLP‑1 suppliers online
Investigations found a flood of online ads and suppliers selling compounded GLP‑1 products and using brand names they aren’t allowed to invoke, such as Ozempic, Wegovy and Zepbound (the-independent.com). Consumer alerts advise checking credentials and avoiding sites that promise brand‑name pharmaceuticals without clear regulatory oversight (the-independent.com).
Online sellers are still pushing compounded weight-loss shots with brand names and claims the United States Food and Drug Administration says they cannot legally use. (fda.gov) On February 6, 2026, the Food and Drug Administration said it would restrict active ingredients used in non-Food and Drug Administration-approved compounded glucagon-like peptide-1 drugs that companies were mass-marketing online, including Hims & Hers and other compounders. The agency said marketers cannot call those products “generic” versions, say they have the “same active ingredient,” or claim they are clinically proven. (fda.gov) That crackdown followed more than 50 warning letters the Food and Drug Administration sent in September 2025 to United States and overseas sellers of compounded semaglutide and tirzepatide. The letters targeted websites and ads that compared compounded products to approved drugs such as Wegovy and Zepbound or implied equal safety and effectiveness. (wsgr.com) The market grew during shortages of the brand-name drugs. The Food and Drug Administration said state-licensed compounders had to stop relying on the tirzepatide shortage by March 2025, and outsourcing facilities lost that shortage-based enforcement discretion on March 19, 2025. (fda.gov) Semaglutide followed months later. The Food and Drug Administration said the shortage was resolved in February 2025, with enforcement discretion ending for state-licensed compounders by April 2025 and for outsourcing facilities by May 22, 2025. (fda.gov) Compounding is the practice of mixing a drug for a specific patient, usually when a commercial product cannot meet a medical need. The Food and Drug Administration says compounded drugs are not reviewed for safety, effectiveness, or quality before they are sold. (fda.gov) The agency has also tied the online sales boom to counterfeit products. On December 5, 2025, the Food and Drug Administration warned consumers not to use counterfeit Ozempic found in the United States drug supply chain and said patients should buy the drug only with a valid prescription through state-licensed pharmacies. (fda.gov) An earlier Food and Drug Administration alert on April 14, 2025 said several hundred units of counterfeit Ozempic had entered the United States supply chain outside Novo Nordisk’s authorized distribution network. The agency told pharmacies to buy only through authorized distributors and told consumers to report online sellers offering counterfeit or tampered medicines. (content.govdelivery.com) One September 9, 2025 warning letter to a seller called GLP-1 Solution said the company’s website offered compounded semaglutide, tirzepatide, and retatrutide, and that some of its claims were false or misleading under federal law. The letter said the Food and Drug Administration had reviewed the site in August 2025. (fda.gov) The Food and Drug Administration’s message to shoppers is narrower than the ads: use a valid prescription, check that the pharmacy is state-licensed, and be wary of websites promising brand-name drugs without clear oversight. The agency said companies that keep selling or marketing unapproved compounded glucagon-like peptide-1 products can face seizure or injunction. (fda.gov)
