You have heard and read so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. The problem is cost.
But it seems alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a site with more affordable medication – and requiring no necessity to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive no product and lose any funds you paid. 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 led to a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams established to simply take people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, saying they could contain “toxins and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was over twice the overall amount lost in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting 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 occur on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be subtle differences in text or logos.
These communications or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased recently, the fraudsters will price their “product” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a serious monetary, medical and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. These products must only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.
Criminals 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 based in the UK, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm they are correctly licensed.
