You have come across a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to get slim, you feel the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no need to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide 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 forfeit any funds you paid. At worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, saying they might include “toxins and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the number of clients who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was more than double the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority occur on messaging apps and social media. On socials, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or updates will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic slimming injections, rose of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can come at a serious monetary, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is correctly licensed.