You've heard and read a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with more affordable medication – and requiring no need to go through official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on social media the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent no product and forfeit any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through digital platforms, stating they could contain “harmful substances and additional components that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum lost to scams related to slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams soaring in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, a profile may imitate the brand that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
These communications or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, rose of late, the scammers will price their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can entail a serious monetary, medical and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is properly registered.
