You've come across so much about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. The problem is cost.
But it seems alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. A text message comes through providing a URL to a website with much cheaper drugs – and with no need to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through social media, saying they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money lost to scams involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was more than double the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, an account may mimic the company that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or posts will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased recently, the fraudsters will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a serious monetary, health-related and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage applies: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm they are correctly licensed.
