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 in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. A text message comes through providing a URL to a website with much cheaper medication – and with no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent nothing and lose any funds you paid. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in fake goods hitting the market and scams set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, 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 major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the number of customers who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was over twice the total sum lost in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority occur on communication platforms and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can come at a serious monetary, medical and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. These products must only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.
