You have heard and read a great deal about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out ahead of the holiday period. The problem is cost.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. An SMS comes through providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. At best, you'll receive nothing 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 widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against buying such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via social media, saying they might include “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was more than double the overall amount lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
Most take place on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, a profile may mimic the brand that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
These communications or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased recently, the fraudsters will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can entail a serious monetary, medical and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. These products must only be obtained from a registered pharmacy with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.
Criminals can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is properly registered.
