You have come across so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel it is time to give it a go in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS comes through providing a URL to a website with much cheaper medication – and requiring no need to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms recently, prompting you to take the plunge.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and forfeit whatever money you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices set up to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they could contain “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. According to the bank, the total sum lost to scams involving slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was more than double 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 health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority occur on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, a profile may imitate the brand that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose recently, the scammers will price their “product” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can entail a significant monetary, medical and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an online pharmacy located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is properly registered.
