You've heard and read a great deal about people using slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. A text message arrives giving a link to a site with more affordable medication – and with no necessity to navigate official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive nothing and forfeit whatever money you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices set up to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via social media, saying they might include “harmful substances 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 amount of money stolen through scams related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was over twice the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams soaring in recent months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
The majority occur on communication platforms and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in spelling or logos.
These communications or posts will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a significant monetary, medical and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage applies: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is correctly licensed.
