You have come across a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like it is time to give it a go in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems there are other options rather than getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and with no necessity to navigate official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms the other day, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive no product and lose any funds you paid. At worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic weight loss medications has led to a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through social media, saying they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most take place on messaging apps and social media. On socials, an account may mimic the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in spelling or logos.
These communications or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a significant monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. These products must only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to health.
Criminals can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, you can check the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is properly registered.
