You've come across so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, you feel it is time to try them out ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. A text message comes through providing a URL to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and lose whatever money you spent. At worst, you receive a fake version, containing unspecified components which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams established to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through digital platforms, saying they might include “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke 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 stolen through fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority take place on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
These communications or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the scammers will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a significant monetary, medical and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: if it appears overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is correctly licensed.
