In Spain, nearly half of the medicines declared illegal by the national medicines agency continued to be advertised on Facebook, Instagram, Google and TikTok after being banned.

Omissions

• The 'nearly half' figure originates from a single investigative outlet (Maldita.es), not from an official AEMPS publication; the 45% is Maldita's own calculation based on AEMPS's list of illegal medicines.
• No independent primary source (AEMPS, Eurostat, or another statistics body) publishing the 45% figure was located; the number is a journalistic investigation rather than an official statistic.
• The investigation covers medicines declared illegal over the two years preceding June 2026, not an open-ended historical total; the figure is a snapshot of that specific window.

Sources

• SecondaryMaldita.es — InvestigacionesFacebook, Instagram, Google o TikTok anuncian el 45% de los medicamentos declarados ilegales por la ley española en los últimos 2 años. (El 45% de los medicamentos prohibidos en España se siguen anunciando en Facebook, Instagram, Google y TikTok.)
• SecondaryInfoPeriodistas (Diario)Según Maldita.es, el 45% de los medicamentos prohibidos se siguen anunciando en Instagram, Google y TikTok.