You've come across so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to give it a go in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. An SMS arrives giving a link to a website with more affordable medication – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and lose any funds you spent. At worst, you receive a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has led to a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via 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 customers who have been impacted by the fraud. According to the bank, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was over twice the total sum lost in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams soaring in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most occur on communication platforms and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious financial, medical and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or online profile look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are correctly licensed.
