You have heard and read so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out ahead of the festive season. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. A text message comes through giving a link to a site with more affordable medication – and with no need to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and lose whatever money you spent. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via social media, saying they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank show a significant surge in the number of clients who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities related to weight loss injections, pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was more than double the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority take place on messaging apps and social media. On socials, a profile may imitate the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
The messages or posts will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can entail a significant monetary, medical and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. These products must 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 wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is correctly licensed.
