You've heard and read a great deal about people using weight loss injections to get slim, you feel it is time to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. A text message arrives giving a link to a website with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no need to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on social media the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. At best, you'll receive nothing and forfeit whatever money you spent. In the worst, you receive a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams set up to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through social media, stating they might include “toxins and additional components that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum lost to scams related to weight loss injections, pens, pills and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was more than double the total sum lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting 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
Most take place on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in spelling or logos.
The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a significant monetary, medical and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. These products must only be obtained from a licensed chemist with a valid script provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is properly registered.
