You have heard and read a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
But it seems there are other options rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and forfeit whatever money you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, saying they might include “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was over twice the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority take place on communication platforms and social media. On socials, an account may mimic the company that you seek, but you'll often notice 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 “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can come at a serious financial, health-related and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: if it appears overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are properly registered.
