You've come across so much about people using slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. An SMS arrives giving a link to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no need to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive nothing and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, saying they could contain “toxins and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the number of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum lost to scams related to weight loss injections, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was more than double the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most occur on messaging apps and social media. On socials, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or logos.
These communications or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased recently, the scammers will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a significant monetary, health-related and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or online profile appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is properly registered.
