You have heard and read so much about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out ahead of the festive season. The problem is expense.
But it seems alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. An SMS arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no need to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media the other day, prompting you to take the plunge.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. At best, you will be sent nothing and forfeit any funds you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through social media, stating they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money stolen through scams involving slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was over twice the overall amount lost in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams soaring in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
The majority take place on communication platforms and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, rose of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can come at a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should only be obtained from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, they advise. When procured from other sources, they can present significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is properly registered.
