You have heard and read a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
But it seems there are other options instead of getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. A text message arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no need to navigate official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms recently, prompting you to go for it.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and forfeit any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components which may result in serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a increase in fake goods entering circulation and scams set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via social media, stating they could contain “toxins and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum lost to scams related to weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was more than double the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority occur on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, rose of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, you can check the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is properly registered.
