You have come across so much about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message comes through giving a link to a site with more affordable medication – and with no need to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a similar ad on social media the other day, prompting you to take the plunge.
The problem is such promotions are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and forfeit whatever money you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams established to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or via digital platforms, saying they could contain “toxins and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money lost to scams related to weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was more than double the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
The majority take place on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
The messages or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a serious financial, medical and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. They should only be obtained from a licensed chemist with a valid script provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, you can check the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm they are correctly licensed.
