You've heard and read so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. A text message arrives giving a link to a site with more affordable drugs – and with no need to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms recently, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and forfeit any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through social media, saying they might include “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
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 stolen through fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose recently, the scammers will price their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a significant financial, medical and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
What to do
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 cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose serious risks to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or online profile appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is correctly licensed.
