All four products are also approved by on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods as being suitable for treating a wide variety of pain types.

The ACCC said misleading representations that each product specifically targeted a particular type of pain and solely treated that pain were made on packaging and the drug company's website.

"We're very seriously concerned," ACCC chairman Rod Sims said. "There's obviously the competition point that you might buy this product to deal with specific pain when of course you could have bought somebody else's product. More important for consumers is you might buy more than one packet when you don't need to. Next, you'll be paying more because these products are quite expensive compared to [other analgesic products] so you're paying for something that we allege you're probably not getting."

Nurofen disputed the allegations of consumer law breaches over its pain-specific packaging, saying the products provided "easier navigation" of pain-relief options for consumers.

"Nurofen is committed to the quality use of medicines and promoting and protecting the health of Australians. As part of this commitment and responsibility, Nurofen works closely with all regulatory bodies to ensure high standards compliance to guidelines. Nurofen will continue to work with regulators to ensure its packaging continues to be fully aligned with all guidelines and requirements and still offer consumers with clear pain relief options for their pain type."