You have heard and read so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. A text message arrives giving a link to a website with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no need to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent nothing and forfeit whatever money you spent. In the worst, you receive a fake version, containing unspecified components which may result in serious medical issues.
The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices set up to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against buying such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, stating they might include “toxins and other ingredients that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank show a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the total sum lost in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
The majority take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
These communications or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can entail a serious financial, health-related and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage holds true: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. They should only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Criminals can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are correctly licensed.
