You have heard and read a great deal about people using slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. A text message comes through giving a link to a site with much cheaper drugs – and with no need to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent no product and lose whatever money you spent. At worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a increase in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams established to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying these illegal weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through digital platforms, saying they might include “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities related to weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most occur on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or posts will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose recently, the scammers will price their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can entail a significant monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications via the web. These products must only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is correctly licensed.
