You've come across so much about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the pharmacy. A text message arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper drugs – and with no need to go through official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and lose any funds you spent. At worst, you obtain a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams set up to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through social media, saying they might include “harmful substances and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams soaring in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most take place on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or logos.
The messages or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, has increased recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can come at a serious monetary, health-related and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage applies: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present significant dangers to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is properly registered.
