You've come across a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel it is time to try them out ahead of the holiday period. The problem is expense.
But it seems alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. A text message comes through providing a URL to a site with much cheaper drugs – and with no need to navigate proper procedures. And you saw 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 scams. At best, you'll receive nothing and forfeit any funds you paid. At worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices set up to simply take people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, saying they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was over twice the overall amount lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased of late, the scammers will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a serious financial, health-related and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. 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 may pose serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an online pharmacy based in the UK, you can check the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is correctly licensed.
