You have come across a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel it is time to give it a go in the run-up to the holiday period. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper medication – and with no necessity to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent no product and forfeit any funds you spent. At worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams set up to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, saying they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities related to weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was more than double the total sum stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, an account may mimic the company that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or logos.
The messages or updates will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic slimming injections, rose of late, the fraudsters will price their “item” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can entail a serious financial, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. 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 may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.
Criminals can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is correctly licensed.