You have come across a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, you feel the moment has come to try them out ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no need to go through proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. At best, you will be sent no product and lose any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams established to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against buying these illegal slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through social media, saying they might include “toxins and other ingredients that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. According to the bank, the amount of money stolen through scams involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was more than double the total sum lost in the previous three months. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority take place on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or logos.
The messages or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a significant monetary, medical and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines 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 can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, you can check the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is properly registered.
