You have come across so much about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. A text message comes through providing a URL to a site with much cheaper medication – and with no need to go through official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, prompting you 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 forfeit any funds you paid. At worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has led to a rise in fake goods entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the overall amount lost in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the brand that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the fraudsters will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a significant monetary, medical and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Criminals can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an online pharmacy based in the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is correctly licensed.
