You have come across a great deal about people using slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of obtaining a doctor's script and going to the pharmacy. An SMS comes through providing a URL to a site with much cheaper medication – and requiring no need to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on social media the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has led to a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, stating they might include “toxins and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a significant surge in the number of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
Most take place on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
The messages or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a serious financial, health-related and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage holds true: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can go to great lengths to make their site or online profile appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure they are correctly licensed.
