You have come across so much about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper medication – and requiring no need to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and forfeit whatever money you spent. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has led to a rise in fake goods hitting the market and deceptive practices established to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via social media, saying they could contain “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the total sum lost to scams related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most occur on communication platforms and social media. On socials, an account may mimic the company that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in text or logos.
These communications or posts will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased recently, the fraudsters will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a significant financial, health-related and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
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 Great Britain, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is correctly licensed.
