You've heard and read so much about people using weight loss injections to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the pharmacy. A text message comes through providing a URL to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no need to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive nothing and lose whatever money you spent. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, stating they could contain “toxins and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to scams involving weight loss injections, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was over twice the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority occur on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, a profile may imitate the brand that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a serious monetary, medical and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is correctly licensed.
