You have come across so much 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. The problem is cost.
But it seems there are other options instead of getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message comes through giving a link to a site with much cheaper medication – and with no necessity to navigate official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is these ads are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent no product and lose any funds you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components which may result in serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in fake goods entering circulation and scams established to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, saying they could contain “toxins and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was over twice the total sum stolen in the previous three months. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority occur on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the brand that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose of late, the fraudsters will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a significant financial, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are properly registered.
