You've come across so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to get slim, you feel the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. An SMS arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. At best, you'll receive no product and forfeit any funds you spent. In the worst, you receive a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a increase in fake goods entering circulation and scams established to simply take consumers' cash.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via digital platforms, saying they might include “toxins and additional components that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was over twice the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most occur on communication platforms and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the brand that you seek, but there will typically be subtle differences in text or brand marks.
These communications or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, rose of late, the fraudsters will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can come at a significant financial, medical and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage applies: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. These products must only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is correctly licensed.
