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It’s bad enough that there is a global pandemic going on right now. Now, it seems shysters and grifters are aiming to profit on the back of it, as well. Thankfully, Amazon is doing something to combat them by removing one million products from its site. The reason for the bans? Inaccurate claims that ranged from defending against the coronavirus to curing it completely. Yea, not good.
The retail giant has also taken decisive action against price gougers, removing tens of thousands of “deals” that were anything but. That’s encouraging news since the world’s largest online retailer had issues with failing to remove banned or unsafe products as recently as last year. That won’t help it in Italy though, with the authorities probing Amazon over surging prices on sanitizing gels and face masks.
Earlier this week, a ten pack of N95 face masks on Amazon was selling for $109 from third-party sellers, up from an average of $13.28 in the last six months. That’s a hefty price hike, way over what could be reasonable supply and demand.
To date, the coronavirus has killed over 2,800 people worldwide on every continent except Antarctica. That’s led to governments closing schools, large conferences being canceled, and medical supplies being stockpiled. While a vaccine is in the works, currently the focus is on containment and early identification of new cases.
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