You have come across so much about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
But it seems there are other options rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the pharmacy. An SMS comes through providing a URL to a website with much cheaper medication – and requiring no need to navigate official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive no product and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams established to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, saying they could contain “toxins and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the number of customers who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was over twice the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority take place on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
The messages or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, rose of late, the scammers will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can come at a significant monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: if it appears overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can go to great lengths to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is correctly licensed.
