You have heard and read so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to get slim, you feel it is time to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message comes through providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and with no necessity to navigate official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. At best, you'll receive no product and lose whatever money you spent. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, saying they might include “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum lost to 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 prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with these scams skyrocketing in recent months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most occur on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, an account may mimic the company that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or logos.
These communications or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can entail a significant monetary, medical and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. These products must only be obtained from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an online pharmacy based in the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are properly registered.
