You have heard and read a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel it is time to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. A text message comes through providing a URL to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive no product and lose whatever money you spent. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through digital platforms, stating they might include “toxins and other ingredients that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the number of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, pens, pills and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was over twice the overall amount lost in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority take place on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, an account may imitate the brand that you are looking for, but there will typically be subtle differences in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose of late, the fraudsters will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a significant monetary, medical and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have warned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an online pharmacy located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are properly registered.
