You've heard and read so much about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like it is time to try them out ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent no product and lose any funds you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has led to a increase in fake goods entering circulation and scams set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, saying they might include “toxins and additional components that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities related to weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was more than double the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
The messages or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, rose of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can come at a serious financial, health-related and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have warned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications via the web. They should only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to health.
Criminals can go to great lengths to make their site or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are properly registered.
