You have come across so much about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out ahead of the festive season. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. A text message comes through giving a link to a website with more affordable drugs – and requiring no necessity to go through official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, prompting you to take the plunge.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and forfeit whatever money you paid. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components which may result in serious medical issues.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, saying they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the number of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was over twice the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most occur on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the company that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased recently, the fraudsters will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can entail a serious financial, health-related and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is correctly licensed.