You've heard and read a great deal about people using slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like it is time to try them out ahead of the holiday period. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. An SMS comes through giving a link to a site with more affordable medication – and with no necessity to go through official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, prompting you to go for it.
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 receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams established to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through social media, stating they could contain “toxins and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum lost to scams related to slimming jabs, pens, pills and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was over twice the overall amount lost in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
Most take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the company that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or brand marks.
These communications or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the fraudsters will price their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can entail a serious monetary, health-related and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage applies: if it appears overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an online pharmacy located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is correctly licensed.
