Social media apps o er route for illegal drug sales

BY OLIVIA PRENTZEL THE COLORADO SUN

How easy is it to nd illegal drugs on social media apps? Nearly as convenient as calling an Uber or ordering a pizza, the Colorado Attorney General’s O ce said in a report released March 8.

Access to illegal drugs is “staggering” on social media apps, the report found, and has contributed to the surging number fentanyl overdoses, which has become the leading cause of preventable death for adults under 45, outpacing suicide, gun violence and car accidents.

e 182-page report outlined the ways in which drug dealers use aggressive marketing tactics to sell illegal drugs online, often targeting younger customers, and urged social media platforms and state legislators to enforce new policies to crack down on the sales.

e report, which the attorney general’s o ce is calling rst of its kind, was written under a state law passed in 2022 that requires the Colorado Department of Law to study how the internet and social media platforms are used for the sale and distribution of fentanyl and other counterfeit prescription drugs.

With the rise of social media apps, their convenience and lack of regulation, platforms including TikTok, Snapchat and WhatsApp, have become a major vehicle for drug sales, the report said.

“Where once a teen might have had to seek out a street dealer, hassle friends, or learn to navigate the dark web to access illicit drugs, young people can now locate drug dealers using their smartphones — with the relative