You've heard and read a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel 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 medication – and requiring no need to go through official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch 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 counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams established to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal 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 involving slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was more than double the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most occur on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, a profile may imitate the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or logos.
These communications or updates will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can come at a significant financial, medical and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, you can check the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is properly registered.
