You've heard and read a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to get slim, it feels like it is time to give it a go in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems there are other options instead of 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. You also noticed a similar ad on social media the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive nothing 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 popularity of authentic slimming drugs has led to a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via social media, stating they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money stolen through scams involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September this year, was more than double the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
Most take place on messaging apps and social media. On socials, an account may imitate the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in text or brand marks.
These communications or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a significant financial, health-related and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: if it appears overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications via the web. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are correctly licensed.
