You've heard and read so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the pharmacy. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a website with more affordable drugs – and requiring no need to go through official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on social media recently, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a rise in fake goods entering circulation and scams established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, stating they might include “harmful substances and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been affected by the fraud. 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 over twice the total sum lost in the previous three months. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
The majority take place on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, an account may mimic the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can entail a significant financial, health-related and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. They should only be obtained from a licensed chemist with a valid script provided by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, you can check the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is properly registered.
