You've heard and read so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is expense.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent no product and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams set up to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, stating they could contain “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
Most take place on communication platforms and social media. On socials, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
These communications or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious monetary, health-related and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: if it appears overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. These products must only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm they are correctly licensed.
