You've come across so much about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and going to the chemist. An SMS comes through giving a link to a website with much cheaper drugs – and with no need to go through official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on social media recently, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent no product and forfeit whatever money you paid. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, stating they might include “harmful substances and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, pens, pills and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was more than double the overall amount lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
Most occur on communication platforms and social media. On socials, an account may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased of late, the scammers will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines 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 health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure they are correctly licensed.
