You have heard and read so much about people using slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like 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 there are other options instead of getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no need to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is such promotions are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and lose any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, containing unspecified components which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via social media, stating they might include “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was more than double the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams soaring in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most occur on communication platforms and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
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 slimming injections, has increased of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a significant financial, health-related and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim 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.
