You have heard and read 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 holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper drugs – and with no necessity to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on social media recently, prompting you to take the plunge.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you paid. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices established to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or via social media, saying they could contain “harmful substances and additional components that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to scams involving slimming jabs, pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was more than double the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most take place on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, an account may imitate the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
The messages or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, rose of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a serious financial, health-related and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage applies: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an online pharmacy based in the UK, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is correctly licensed.
