You've come across a great deal about people using weight loss injections to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
But it seems alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. A text message comes through giving a link to a website with much cheaper medication – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. At best, you will be sent no product and forfeit whatever money you paid. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a increase in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via social media, saying they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum stolen through scams related to weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was over twice the total sum lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be subtle differences in text or logos.
These communications or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased of late, the scammers will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a serious monetary, health-related and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is correctly licensed.
