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 ahead of the festive season. The problem is expense.
But it seems there are other options instead of obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. An SMS arrives giving a link to a website with much cheaper medication – and with no need to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms recently, prompting you to go for it.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive nothing and lose whatever money you paid. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the number of customers who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
Most take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in text or logos.
The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, rose of late, the scammers will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.
