You have heard and read a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like it is time to give it a go in the run-up to the holiday period. The problem is expense.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives giving a link to a website with more affordable medication – and requiring no necessity to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent no product and lose whatever money you paid. At worst, you receive 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 established to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, saying they might include “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been affected by the fraud. According to the bank, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most take place on messaging apps and social media. On socials, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, rose of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a significant monetary, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, they advise. When procured from other sources, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is properly registered.
