You've come across a great deal about people using slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like it is time to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper drugs – and with no need to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive no product and forfeit any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams established to simply take people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, stating they might include “toxins and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the number of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money stolen through scams involving weight loss injections, pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was over twice the overall amount lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the brand that you are looking for, but there will typically be subtle differences in text or logos.
These communications or updates will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can entail a serious monetary, medical and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should 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 significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are properly registered.
