You've come across so much about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is 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 giving a link to a site with more affordable medication – and with no necessity to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you paid. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, stating they could contain “toxins and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been affected by the fraud. According to the bank, the total sum stolen through scams related to weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was over twice the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically 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 bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority take place on communication platforms and social networks. Across platforms, an account may mimic the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can come at a significant monetary, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: if it appears overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters 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 pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is properly registered.
