You've heard and read a great deal about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out ahead of the holiday period. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the pharmacy. A text message comes through providing a URL to a website with more affordable medication – and requiring no necessity to navigate official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent nothing and forfeit whatever money you paid. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has led to a increase in fake goods hitting the market and deceptive practices established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through social media, stating they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September this year, was over twice the total sum lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
The majority take place on communication platforms and social media. On socials, an account may mimic the company that you seek, but there will typically be subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
The messages or posts will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, rose of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications via the web. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are properly registered.
