You've heard and read so much about people using slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate official channels. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and forfeit whatever money you paid. At worst, you receive a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams set up to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities related to weight loss injections, pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was more than double the total sum stolen in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority 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 subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious financial, health-related and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.
