You have heard and read a great deal about people using slimming jabs to get slim, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is expense.
But it seems alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. A text message arrives giving a link to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no necessity to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on social media recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and forfeit any funds you spent. At worst, you receive a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, stating they might include “toxins and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money stolen through scams involving weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the total sum lost in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the brand that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the fraudsters will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a serious financial, health-related and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage applies: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are correctly licensed.
