You have heard and read so much about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel it is time to give it a go in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
But it seems there are other options instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. At best, you will be sent nothing and forfeit any funds you spent. At worst, you receive a fake version, 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 set up to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against buying such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via social media, saying they could contain “harmful substances and additional components that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was more than double the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority take place on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, an account may mimic the brand that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, rose recently, the scammers will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a serious monetary, medical and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
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 buying medicines via the web. They should only be obtained from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is properly registered.
