You have come across so much about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel it is time to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. An SMS arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper drugs – and with no necessity to navigate official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on social media the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you paid. At worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has led to a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, saying they could contain “toxins and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the number of customers who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum stolen through scams related to slimming jabs, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was over twice the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority occur on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, an account may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
These communications or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can come at a significant monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. These products must only be obtained from a registered pharmacy with a valid script provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is properly registered.
