You have heard and read a great deal about people using weight loss injections to get slim, you feel it is time to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent nothing and forfeit whatever money you paid. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via digital platforms, saying they could contain “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the number of clients who have been affected by the fraud. According to the bank, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most 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 slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a serious financial, medical and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: if it appears overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Criminals can go to great lengths 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 ensure this is correctly licensed.
