You've come across so much about people using slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like it is time to give it a go in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. A text message comes through providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and with no necessity to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. At best, you'll receive no product and forfeit any funds you spent. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices established to simply take consumers' cash.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through digital platforms, stating they might include “harmful substances and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge 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, pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was over twice the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority occur on communication platforms and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic slimming injections, rose recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a serious monetary, medical and emotional cost,” warns the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are properly registered.
