You've heard and read a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like it is time to try them out ahead of the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems there are other options instead of getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. A text message comes through giving a link to a website with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and lose whatever money you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The widespread use of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, stating they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the total sum lost to scams related to weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was more than double the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
The majority take place on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
These communications or posts will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: if it appears overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. These products must only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are properly registered.
