You've come across a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like it is time to give it a go in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription 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. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent nothing and lose any funds you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams set up to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via social media, saying they could contain “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the total sum stolen through scams related to weight loss injections, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
Most occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
These communications or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, has increased recently, the fraudsters will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a significant financial, health-related and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is correctly licensed.
