You've come across so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. The problem is cost.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. A text message comes through giving a link to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and lose whatever money 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 led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices established to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they might include “toxins and other ingredients that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was more than double the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
The majority occur 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 brand marks.
These communications or updates will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose recently, the fraudsters will price their “product” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a significant monetary, medical and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities 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, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present 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 online pharmacy based in the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm they are correctly licensed.
