You have come across a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is expense.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a website with more affordable drugs – and requiring no need to navigate official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on social media recently, prompting you to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent no product and lose any funds you spent. At worst, you obtain a fake version, containing unspecified components which may result in serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams set up to simply take people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through social media, stating they might include “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum stolen through scams related to weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was more than double the overall amount lost in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most occur on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, rose recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious financial, medical and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: 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 online. These products must 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 significant dangers to health.
Criminals can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is correctly licensed.
