You've come across a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. The problem is cost.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper drugs – and with no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, prompting you to take the plunge.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and forfeit any funds you spent. In the worst, you receive a fake version, containing unspecified components which may result in serious medical issues.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has led to a rise in fake goods hitting the market and deceptive practices set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, saying they might include “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the overall amount lost in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams soaring in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious financial, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: if it appears overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. They should only be obtained from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an online pharmacy based in the UK, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are correctly licensed.
