You have come across so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS comes through providing a URL to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no necessity to go through proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, prompting you to go for it.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent no product and lose whatever money you spent. At worst, you obtain a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against buying these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via social media, saying they might include “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank show a significant surge in the number of customers who have been affected by the fraud. According to the bank, the amount of money lost to scams involving weight loss injections, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was over twice the total sum lost in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the brand that you are looking for, but there will typically be subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
The messages or posts will frequently 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 fraudsters will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can come at a significant monetary, health-related and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is correctly licensed.
