You have heard and read so much about people using weight loss injections to get slim, you feel it is time to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. An SMS arrives giving a link to a website with much cheaper drugs – and with no necessity to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and forfeit any funds you spent. In the worst, you receive a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in fake goods entering circulation and scams established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they could contain “toxins and additional components that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum lost to scams related to weight loss injections, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September this year, was over twice the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
These communications or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased recently, the fraudsters will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can entail a serious financial, health-related and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are correctly licensed.
