You've heard and read a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like it is time to give it a go in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. An SMS comes through giving a link to a website with more affordable medication – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media recently, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive nothing and lose any funds you paid. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against buying such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via social media, saying they could contain “toxins and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the number of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to scams involving weight loss injections, pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the previous three months. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, a profile may mimic the brand that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage applies: if it appears overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are properly registered.
