You have heard and read so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. A text message arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper medication – and with no necessity to navigate official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you spent. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a rise in fake goods hitting the market and deceptive practices established to simply take consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through digital platforms, stating they might include “toxins and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities related to weight loss injections, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was over twice the overall amount lost in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, an account may mimic the brand that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
The messages or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, rose recently, the fraudsters will price their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a significant financial, health-related and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is correctly licensed.
