You've come across a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper medication – and requiring no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you spent. At worst, you receive a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing these illegal slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via social media, saying they could contain “toxins and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum lost to scams related to weight loss injections, pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was over twice the total sum lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting 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
Most occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, an account may mimic the company that you are looking for, but you'll often notice slight variations in text or logos.
The messages or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic slimming injections, rose of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a significant financial, medical and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm they are correctly licensed.
