You have come across a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out ahead of the festive season. The problem is cost.
But it seems there are other options rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. A text message comes through giving a link to a website with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no necessity to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, so you decide 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 no product and lose whatever money you spent. At worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through social media, stating they could contain “harmful substances and additional components that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank show a significant surge in the number of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. According to the bank, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was over twice the total sum lost in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds 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. On socials, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, has increased recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can come at a serious financial, health-related and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage applies: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to health.
Criminals can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, you can check the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is correctly licensed.
