You've heard and read a great deal about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
But it seems there are other options instead of getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives giving a link to a website with more affordable drugs – and requiring no need to go through official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on social media the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive nothing and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a increase in fake goods entering circulation and scams set up to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum stolen through scams related to slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was over twice the overall amount lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases 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 set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a significant monetary, medical and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: should something seem 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. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, you can check the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure they are properly registered.
