You've come across so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. An SMS arrives giving a link to a website with much cheaper medication – and requiring no necessity to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent no product and forfeit any funds you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a rise in fake goods hitting the market and deceptive practices established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they could contain “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the total sum stolen through scams related to slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority occur on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or logos.
The messages or posts will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, rose recently, the fraudsters will price their “item” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious financial, health-related and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script provided by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is correctly licensed.
