You have heard and read a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. The problem is expense.
But it seems there are other options rather than getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. A text message comes through providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and with no necessity to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you receive a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices set up to simply take people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through digital platforms, saying they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money lost to scams involving slimming jabs, pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was more than double the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most occur on communication platforms and social media. On socials, a profile may mimic the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or logos.
These communications or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the scammers will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a serious financial, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are correctly licensed.
