You've come across a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel it is time to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is expense.
But it seems there are other options rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. A text message comes through providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and with no need to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent no product and forfeit whatever money you paid. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams set up to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through social media, 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 slimming jabs, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
Most take place on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the company that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or logos.
The messages or updates will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can come at a serious monetary, health-related and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. These products must solely be acquired 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 go to great lengths to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.
