The Study Of Doping Market: How To Produce Intelligence From Internet Forums

[Michael Scally MD]

[Yes! They are watching you!!!]

Pineau T, Schopfer A, Grossrieder L, Broseus J, Esseiva P, Rossy Q. The study of doping market: How to produce intelligence from Internet forums. Forensic Sci Int 2016;268:103-15. http://www.fsijournal.org/article/S0379-0738(16)30423-6/abstract

Highlights

• Internet forums are a huge data source for studying online doping market.
• A semi-automatic methodology to extract and detect suppliers and products.
• Internet forums highlight the promotion and visibility of suppliers.
• Forums can be used to assess the most popular products and their evolution.
• Intelligence-led screening is a concept to lead online marketplaces detection.

Despite the predominant role played by Internet in the distribution of doping substances, little is currently known about the online offer of doping products. Therefore, the study focuses on the detection of doping substances and suppliers discussed in Internet forums. It aims at having a comprehensive understanding of products and sellers to lead an operational monitoring of the online doping market.

Thirteen community forums on the Internet were investigated and one million topics were extracted with source code scrappers. Then, a semantic analysis was conducted with a semi-automatic process to classify the relevant words according to doping matters. Additionally, the ranking of doping products, active substances and suppliers in regards to the number of contributors to the forums were established and analyzed over time. Finally, promotion methods of suppliers were evaluated.

The results show that anabolic androgenic steroids, used to enhance body image and performance, are the most discussed type of products. A temporal analysis illustrates the stability of the most popular products as well as the emergence of new products such as peptides (e.g. CJC-1295). 327 suppliers were detected, mostly with dedicated websites or direct sales by e-mail as selling methods.

Globally, the implemented methodology shows its ability to detect products and suppliers as well as to follow their temporal trends. The intelligence will serve the definition of online monitoring strategies (e.g. the selection of appropriate keywords). Additionally, it also allows the adjustment of customs inspection strategies and anti-doping analysis by monitoring the popular and emerging substances.

 

[Spooby]

Just the fact that there are people designing these programs that help LE incarcerate others over steroid usage and distribution... smh

I'd be fine with dirty bathtub brewers being incarcerated, they're making people sick or worse with their crap, selling to those not intelligent enough to understand the game, but everyone gets booked into this universal group together, it seems like... masses of ignorant people just assume if you break a law, you're a bad person. The psychology behind that is so juvenile.. society sucks.

 

[Masters Power]

They are watching for sure. The study could have been more aptly named however. Anyone who can "produce intelligence" from most of the posts around here lately may also be able to garner blood from a turnip.

 

[Test_Subject]

Anyone who can "produce intelligence" from most of the posts around here lately may also be able to garner blood from a turnip.

That's about what I was thinking. The study was poorly named.

 

[Millard]

The research sounds like something funded by WADA as part of Project Energia. Is it in the disclosures?:

https://www.wada-ama.org/en/media/news/2016-10/criminal-intelligence-initiative-targets-performance-enhancing-drugs

October 3, 2016

LYON, France – An initiative developed by INTERPOL aims to help member countries understand and combat the trafficking of performance-enhancing drugs through targeted criminal analysis.

Supported by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the School of Criminal Science at the University of Lausanne (UNIL), Project Energia will focus on substances used with the exclusive aim of improving physical fitness and athletic performance. These include anabolic steroids, growth hormones, peptides and erythropoietin (EPO).

INTERPOL and WADA – which is financing the initiative – have collaborated on fighting doping in sports since 2009. UNIL will support the project through its expertise in cybercrime and forensic analysis, especially in its chemical and physical profiling methods.

“The Energia project is a key component in the global fight against doping. By joining forces, WADA and INTERPOL are better able to share intelligence on trafficking methods and on those who manufacture and distribute dangerous substances to athletes seeking an edge,” said Olivier Niggli, Director General, WADA.

“In gaining such intelligence, we are better able to support efforts to cut off the supply of performance enhancing drugs at the source, before they manage to get into the hands of athletes. Along with the behavioural research stemming from the University of Lausanne, we are confident that the project will contribute significantly to protecting clean sport,” added Mr Niggli.

Roraima Andriani, Director of INTERPOL’s Organized and Emerging Crime programme, said: “The use of doping substances to artificially and illegally boost performance is no longer solely associated with elite athletes, as the Internet has made products such as anabolic steroids available to mass consumers. The market is ‘low risk, high profit’ and therefore attractive to organized crime groups worldwide.

“Often manufactured clandestinely with no health regulations, performance-enhancing drugs pose serious health risks to users. We therefore welcome this cooperation agreement with WADA and UNIL which will help the fight against doping in sport,” added Mrs Andriani.

Project Energia will seek to identify criminal networks and their modus operandi; determine the main threats on which to focus law enforcement efforts; foster the exchange of information between law enforcement services so as to harmonize their action; and help uncover connections between trafficking in performance-enhancing drugs, pharmaceutical products and narcotics, and the criminal organizations operating in sport.

François Bussy, VP Research and International Relations at UNIL, said: "Integrity is of significant value to the University of Lausanne, both in terms of research and behaviour. The Energia project therefore fits perfectly with our values."

The project will collate and analyze intelligence on the supply and demand for performance-enhancing drugs seized and provided by the countries participating in the project, and deliver analytical reports.

“To tackle the contemporary challenge of performance-enhancing drug crime, law enforcement needs a coordinated international prevention strategy which also turns to the alternative investigative resources and expertise of academia,” said Rogerio Augusto Viana Galloro, Executive Director of the Brazilian Federal Police which helped make the recent Olympic and Paralympic Games in Rio safe.

Participation in Project Energia is voluntary. Only countries that expressly request to take part in the project may have access to the expertise and the analysis provided. All information will be processed by INTERPOL in conformity with its mandate and relevant rules in force.

 

[Millard]

I noticed researchers are affiliated with UNIL, which has partnered with WADA for Project Energia.

 

[Big_paul]

Despite the predominant role played by Internet in the distribution of doping substances, little is currently known about the online offer of doping products.

I wish that was not true, but it is not true. Every breath we take, every move we make we are watching you. The cops have ordered from every source worth ordering from. If they wanted to, they could shut down this whole thing of ours in one day.

International sources may be safer in the future, because as we know the cops bend the rules, and you must have a lot of cash to show that. Believe me I know. I spent a small fortune staying out of prison for an unconstitutional search. I won, but I was broke afterward.

That being said, I don't care.

 

[Millard]

https://www.wada-ama.org/en/media/news/2016-10/criminal-intelligence-initiative-targets-performance-enhancing-drugs

October 3, 2016

LYON, France – An initiative developed by INTERPOL aims to help member countries understand and combat the trafficking of performance-enhancing drugs through targeted criminal analysis.

Supported by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the School of Criminal Science at the University of Lausanne (UNIL), Project Energia will focus on substances used with the exclusive aim of improving physical fitness and athletic performance. These include anabolic steroids, growth hormones, peptides and erythropoietin (EPO).

INTERPOL and WADA – which is financing the initiative – have collaborated on fighting doping in sports since 2009. UNIL will support the project through its expertise in cybercrime and forensic analysis, especially in its chemical and physical profiling methods.

The WADA press release about Project Energia (criminal intelligence initiative to combat steroid trafficking) states that WADA and INTERPOL are financing the initiative AND the School of Criminal Science at the University of Lausanne (UNIL) is supporting Project Energia.

So I assumed the paper "The study of doping market: How to produce intelligence from Internet forums" may have been done on behalf of WADA/INTEPOL for Project Energia since it also involved researchers from UNIL.

The authors of the paper make no such disclosure. They state that the purpose of the study "only aims academic research purposes". It also suggests the research data may be "useful to settle or guide public health policy and prevention strategies". Nothing about directly assisting law enforcement or anti-doping enforcement agendas. But there is this, "allows the adjustment of customs inspection strategies and anti-doping analysis by monitoring the popular and emerging substances".