You've come across so much about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.
But it seems there are other options instead of getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS arrives giving a link to a site with more affordable drugs – and requiring no necessity to go through official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on social media recently, prompting you to take the plunge.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and lose any funds you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, saying they could contain “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to scams related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the total sum lost in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
The messages or updates will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, rose recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a significant monetary, medical and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: if it appears overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications via the web. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm they are correctly licensed.
