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 ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. An SMS arrives giving a link to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no need to go through proper procedures. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and forfeit whatever money you paid. In the worst, you receive a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in fake goods entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against buying these illegal weight loss medicines without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via social media, stating they could contain “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank show a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was over twice the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. The average scam costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most take place on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, an account may mimic the company that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can come at a serious financial, health-related and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: if it appears overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is properly registered.
