You've come across a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel it is time to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. A text message comes through providing a URL to a website with more affordable medication – and requiring no necessity to navigate official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly scams. At best, you'll receive no product and forfeit any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic weight loss medications has led to a increase in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams established to simply take people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via social media, saying they could contain “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the total sum lost to scams involving slimming jabs, injector pens, pills 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.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams soaring in recent months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
Most take place on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, a profile may mimic the brand that you seek, but there will typically be subtle differences in text or logos.
The messages or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a significant monetary, medical and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: if it appears overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. They should only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.
