You've come across so much about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is cost.
But it seems there are other options instead of getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper medication – and with no necessity to navigate official channels. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms recently, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent no product and lose any funds you paid. At worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing these illegal slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, saying they might include “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money lost to scams related to weight loss injections, pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was over twice the total sum lost in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority occur on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be subtle differences in spelling or logos.
The messages or posts will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the scammers will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a significant monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are correctly licensed.
