You've heard and read a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. The problem is expense.
But it seems there are other options instead of obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. A text message arrives giving a link to a site with more affordable medication – and requiring no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent no product and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices established to simply take consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via digital platforms, saying they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, an account may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a serious monetary, medical and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage applies: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.
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 located within the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is properly registered.
