You have heard and read so much about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel it is time to try them out ahead of the holiday period. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent no product and forfeit whatever money you spent. At worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in fake goods entering circulation and deceptive practices set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, saying they might include “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the number of customers who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was more than double the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the company that you are looking for, but you'll often notice slight variations in text or logos.
The messages 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 of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can entail a serious monetary, medical and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Criminals can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is properly registered.
