You've heard and read so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems there are other options rather than getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message comes through providing a URL to a site with much cheaper drugs – and with no necessity to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent no product and forfeit any funds you paid. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in fake goods entering circulation and scams set up to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via social media, saying they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank show a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was over twice the total sum lost in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority take place on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, rose recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a significant financial, medical and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.
