You've come across so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to get slim, it feels like it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. A text message arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no necessity 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 almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent nothing and forfeit whatever money you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against buying such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through digital platforms, stating they might include “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to scams related to slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was more than double the total sum lost in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, a profile may imitate the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can entail a significant financial, medical and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are properly registered.
