You've heard and read a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel it is time to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and going to the pharmacy. A text message comes through giving a link to a site with more affordable medication – and with no need to navigate official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on social media the other day, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you paid. At worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices established to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, saying they could contain “toxins and other ingredients that could cause genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to scams related to weight loss injections, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was more than double the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with these scams soaring in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most take place on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the brand that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or logos.
The messages or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose of late, the scammers will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can entail a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script provided by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to health.
Criminals can go to great lengths to make their site or online profile appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.
