You have heard and read a great deal about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no need to go through proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent no product and forfeit whatever money you paid. In the worst, you receive a fake version, containing unspecified components which may result in serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has led to a rise in fake goods entering circulation and deceptive practices set up to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or via social media, stating they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the total sum stolen through scams involving weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social media. On socials, a profile may mimic the company that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the fraudsters will price their “product” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. These products must only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure this is correctly licensed.
