You've come across a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, you feel it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives giving a link to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no need to navigate official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms recently, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent nothing and lose any funds you paid. At worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a rise in fake goods entering circulation and scams set up to simply take people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via digital platforms, stating they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the fraud. According to the bank, the amount of money stolen through scams involving weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was more than double the overall amount lost in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in text or logos.
The messages or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious monetary, medical and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage holds true: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. These products must only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are correctly licensed.
