You've heard and read so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel it is time to try them out ahead of the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. A text message arrives giving a link to a website with more affordable medication – and requiring no necessity to go through official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be scams. At best, you'll receive nothing and forfeit whatever money you spent. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in fake goods hitting the market and deceptive practices established to simply take consumers' cash.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through social media, saying they might include “toxins and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum lost to scams involving slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was more than double the total sum stolen in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
Most occur on communication platforms and social networks. Across platforms, an account may mimic the company that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or logos.
The messages or posts will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a serious monetary, health-related and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: if it appears overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, they advise. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is properly registered.
