You have heard and read a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, you feel it is time to try them out ahead of the festive season. 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 website with more affordable medication – and with no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent nothing and lose any funds you paid. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams established to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via social media, saying they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum stolen through scams involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was over twice the overall amount lost in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are actively exploiting 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 communication platforms and social media. On socials, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be subtle differences in spelling or logos.
The messages or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose of late, the fraudsters will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a significant financial, medical and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script provided by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure they are correctly licensed.
