You've come across a great deal about people using weight loss injections to get slim, it feels like it is time to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. A text message comes through giving a link to a site with more affordable drugs – and with no necessity to navigate official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and forfeit any funds you paid. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in fake goods entering circulation and scams established to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most take place on communication platforms and social media. On socials, an account may mimic the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or logos.
The messages or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased recently, the scammers will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is correctly licensed.
