You've come across a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel it is time to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS comes through giving a link to a site with more affordable medication – and with no necessity to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, prompting you to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and lose whatever money you paid. In the worst, you receive a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices established to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via social media, stating they might include “toxins and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money stolen through scams related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets 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 such frauds soaring in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority occur on communication platforms and social media. On socials, a profile may mimic the company that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or logos.
These communications or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the scammers will price their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can entail a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage applies: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an online pharmacy based in the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm they are correctly licensed.
