You've heard and read so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel it is time to try them out ahead of the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a website with more affordable drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you receive a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via digital platforms, stating they might include “toxins and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum stolen through scams related to slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was over twice the overall amount stolen 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 the past few months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or logos.
The messages or posts will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can come at a serious financial, medical and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. These products must only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is correctly licensed.
