You have come across a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel it is time to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no necessity to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and forfeit whatever money you paid. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they might include “harmful substances and additional components that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the number of customers who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum lost to scams involving slimming jabs, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was more than double the overall amount lost in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“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.
How It Appears
The majority occur on communication platforms and social media. On socials, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or logos.
These communications or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased of late, the scammers will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a significant financial, medical and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, they advise. When procured from other sources, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is properly registered.
