You've heard and read so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, you feel it is time to try them out ahead of the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message comes through providing a URL to a site with more affordable medication – and requiring no necessity to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on social media recently, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive nothing and lose any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices set up to merely steal consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through social media, saying they could contain “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum lost to scams involving weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most occur on communication platforms and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the company 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”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased of late, the fraudsters will price their “product” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a serious monetary, medical and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage applies: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script provided by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure they are correctly licensed.
