You've come across so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to get slim, you feel it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is cost.
But it seems alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS comes through giving a link to a website with much cheaper medication – and requiring no need to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and forfeit any funds you paid. At worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in fake goods entering circulation and scams established to simply take consumers' cash.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing these illegal slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via social media, stating they might include “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was over twice the total sum lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most take place on messaging apps and social media. On socials, an account may imitate the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a serious monetary, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. These products must only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile 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.
