You've heard and read a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems there are other options rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the pharmacy. A text message comes through providing a URL to a website with more affordable medication – and with no necessity to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on social media the other day, prompting you to take the plunge.
The problem is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive nothing and lose any funds you spent. At worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a increase in fake goods entering circulation and deceptive practices established to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through digital platforms, saying they might include “toxins and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
The majority occur on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
The messages or posts 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 recently, the fraudsters will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a significant monetary, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is correctly licensed.
