You've heard and read a great deal about people using weight loss injections to get slim, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems there are other options rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with more affordable medication – and with no need to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive no product and forfeit any funds you paid. At worst, you receive a fake version, containing unspecified components which may result in serious medical issues.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against buying such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or via digital platforms, saying they might include “harmful substances and additional components that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was more than double the total sum lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with these scams 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. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, 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 “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic slimming injections, rose of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can come at a significant monetary, medical and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is properly registered.
