You have come across a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to try them out ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media recently, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and lose whatever money you paid. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in fake goods hitting the market and deceptive practices established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, saying they might include “toxins and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the number of customers who have been impacted by the fraud. According to the bank, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was over twice the overall amount lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
Most occur on communication platforms and social media. On socials, an account may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
The messages or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, rose of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can come at a significant financial, health-related and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: if it appears overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is correctly licensed.
