You have heard and read a great deal about people using slimming jabs to get slim, you feel it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is expense.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. A text message arrives giving a link to a website with much cheaper medication – and requiring no necessity to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms the other day, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive no product and forfeit any funds you spent. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components which may result in serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through digital platforms, stating they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics 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 amount of money lost to scams related to weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was more than double the total sum stolen in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most take place on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, an account may mimic the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, rose recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can come at a significant monetary, medical and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in the UK, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are correctly licensed.
