You have come across a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel it is time to give it a go in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. A text message comes through providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and with no need to navigate official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive nothing and lose whatever money you spent. At worst, you obtain a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in fake goods hitting the market and scams established to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, saying they could contain “harmful substances and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to scams involving weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was more than double the total sum stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters 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 media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be subtle differences in text or brand marks.
The messages or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, has increased recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a significant financial, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is properly registered.
