You've come across a great deal about people using slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper drugs – and with no need to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent no product and forfeit whatever money you paid. At worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in fake goods hitting the market and deceptive practices set up to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through social media, saying they could contain “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities related to weight loss injections, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was more than double the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
Most take place on communication platforms and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
The messages or posts will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, rose recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a significant financial, health-related and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned 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 healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm they are correctly licensed.
