You have come across so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, you feel it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS arrives giving a link to a site with more affordable drugs – and with no need to go through official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on social media the other day, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you paid. At worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in fake goods hitting the market and deceptive practices set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, stating they could contain “harmful substances and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the number of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was more than double the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
The majority take place on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, an account 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 often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose of late, the scammers will price their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can come at a significant monetary, medical and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications via the web. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or online profile appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is correctly licensed.
