You've come across so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no necessity to navigate official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on social media the other day, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and lose any funds you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against buying these illegal slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, saying they could contain “toxins and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
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 amount of money lost to scams involving weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was more than double the total sum stolen in the previous three months. The average scam costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most occur on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, an account may mimic the company that you seek, but there will typically be subtle differences in spelling or logos.
The messages or posts will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, rose recently, the scammers will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a significant monetary, medical and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, they advise. When procured from other sources, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is properly registered.
