You have come across so much about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like it is time to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. A text message arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper medication – and requiring no need to go through official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be scams. At best, you will be sent nothing and forfeit any funds you spent. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in fake goods entering circulation and scams set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via social media, stating they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum lost to scams involving slimming jabs, pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was more than double the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
Most occur on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
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 slimming injections, has increased of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious monetary, medical and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is properly registered.
