You've heard and read so much about people using slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to try them out ahead of the holiday period. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of getting a prescription and going to the chemist. An SMS comes through providing a URL to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and lose any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via social media, saying they might include “harmful substances and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. According to the bank, the amount of money stolen through scams related to slimming jabs, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was over twice the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority take place on communication platforms and social media. On socials, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be subtle differences in spelling or logos.
These communications or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a significant financial, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure they are properly registered.
