You've come across a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel 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 getting a prescription and going to the chemist. An SMS comes through giving a link to a site with more affordable drugs – and requiring no necessity to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you paid. At worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has led to a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams set up to simply take people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, saying they could contain “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in recent months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most take place on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, an account may imitate the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or logos.
These communications or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, rose recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can come at a serious financial, medical and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an online pharmacy located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.
