You have come across a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive nothing and lose whatever money you paid. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in fake goods hitting the market and deceptive practices set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they could contain “toxins and other ingredients that could cause genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities related to weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was more than double the overall amount lost in the previous three months. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams soaring in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority occur on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, an account may mimic the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, rose recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can entail a significant financial, medical and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage applies: if it appears overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is properly registered.
