You have heard and read a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like it is time to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. The problem is expense.
But it seems alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS comes through providing a URL to a site with more affordable medication – and with no need to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms recently, prompting you to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. At best, you will be sent no product and lose any funds you paid. At worst, you receive a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, stating they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to scams involving weight loss injections, pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
Most take place on messaging apps and social media. 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 posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose of late, the fraudsters will price their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a serious monetary, health-related and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage applies: if it appears overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are properly registered.
