You have come across a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and with no need to go through proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and lose any funds you paid. At worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams established to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via social media, stating they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the total sum lost to scams related to weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority occur on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in spelling or logos.
The messages or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can come at a significant monetary, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose serious risks to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, you can check the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is correctly licensed.
