You've heard and read a great deal about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message comes through giving a link to a website with more affordable medication – and requiring no need to go through proper procedures. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms the other day, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be scams. At best, you'll receive no product and lose whatever money you paid. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in fake goods entering circulation and scams set up to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, saying they could contain “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money lost to scams related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was more than double the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
Most take place on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, an account may mimic the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or logos.
These communications or posts will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic slimming injections, rose recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a serious financial, medical and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. These products must only be obtained from a licensed chemist with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is properly registered.
