Web Gives Kids Easy Access to Cigarettes
Few Internet Cigarette Vendors Check Minors for ID
Sept. 9, 2003 -- Discount Internet cigarette venders offer minors easy access to cigarettes without the legal hassle of actually having to show proper identification, a new study shows.
Researchers found that underage adolescents were able to successfully purchase cigarettes over the Internet nearly 92% of the time and vendors never verified the age of the recipient when the cigarettes were delivered.
Experts say the findings highlight a major gap in youth smoking prevention efforts.
"These high rates of Internet cigarette sales to minors are reminiscent of rates observed at retail outlets more than a decade ago, when there was little enforcement of adolescent access laws," write researcher Kurt Ribisl, PhD, of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and colleagues.
"Minors appear to have easy access to cigarettes via the Internet because many Internet vendors have weak or nonexistent age verification policies," they write.
For the study, which appears in this week's issue of the The Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers asked four adolescents aged 11 to 15 years old to try to buy cigarettes under adult supervision from 55 different Internet cigarette vendors.
Researchers found that the minors successfully received cigarettes in 94% of purchase attempts made using a credit card and in 89% of money order purchase attempts. Internet cigarette vendors sent a total of 1,650 packs of cigarettes to the underage adolescents involved in the study.
Other findings include:
Although a warning that buyers need to be at least 18 years of age appeared on 91% of the web sites, researchers found there was no age verification for any of the cigarette deliveries.
Web Gives Kids Easy Access to Cigarettes
Few Internet Cigarette Vendors Check Minors for ID
Sept. 9, 2003 -- Discount Internet cigarette venders offer minors easy access to cigarettes without the legal hassle of actually having to show proper identification, a new study shows.
Researchers found that underage adolescents were able to successfully purchase cigarettes over the Internet nearly 92% of the time and vendors never verified the age of the recipient when the cigarettes were delivered.
Experts say the findings highlight a major gap in youth smoking prevention efforts.
"These high rates of Internet cigarette sales to minors are reminiscent of rates observed at retail outlets more than a decade ago, when there was little enforcement of adolescent access laws," write researcher Kurt Ribisl, PhD, of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and colleagues.
"Minors appear to have easy access to cigarettes via the Internet because many Internet vendors have weak or nonexistent age verification policies," they write.
Internet Cigarette Purchases Easy for Minors
For the study, which appears in this week's issue of the The Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers asked four adolescents aged 11 to 15 years old to try to buy cigarettes under adult supervision from 55 different Internet cigarette vendors.
Researchers found that the minors successfully received cigarettes in 94% of purchase attempts made using a credit card and in 89% of money order purchase attempts. Internet cigarette vendors sent a total of 1,650 packs of cigarettes to the underage adolescents involved in the study.
Other findings include:
- Of the 76 cigarette packages that were delivered, 65 of them were left on the doorstep without contact with the recipient.
- 9 vendors stated on their web site that buyers must mail or fax a copy of their photo ID, but only three money order purchases and one credit card purchase were refused because the buyer didn't provide proof of age.
- Some of the vendors included complimentary packs of cigarettes or individual samples of cigarettes with the adolescents' orders.
Although a warning that buyers need to be at least 18 years of age appeared on 91% of the web sites, researchers found there was no age verification for any of the cigarette deliveries.
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