You've heard and read a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. A text message arrives providing a URL to a site with much cheaper medication – and with no necessity to go through official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you spent. At worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in fake goods hitting the market and deceptive practices established to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, saying they could contain “harmful substances and additional components that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the total sum stolen through scams related to weight loss injections, pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was over twice the total sum lost in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most occur on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or logos.
The messages or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose recently, the fraudsters will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a significant monetary, medical and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: 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 via the web. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is properly registered.
