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 ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. A text message comes through providing a URL to a site with much cheaper medication – and requiring no need to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and forfeit whatever money you spent. At worst, you obtain a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams set up to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying these illegal slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via social media, stating they might include “toxins and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was more than double the overall amount lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority take place on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
The messages or posts will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose of late, the scammers will price their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a significant financial, medical and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an online pharmacy located within Great Britain, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is correctly licensed.
