You have come across so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to get slim, it feels like it is time to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS comes through giving a link to a site with much cheaper medication – and with no necessity to go through official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive no product and forfeit whatever money you paid. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a increase in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams set up to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via digital platforms, stating they could contain “harmful substances and additional components that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the total sum stolen through scams involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was over twice the overall amount lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most take place on communication platforms and social media. On socials, a profile may imitate the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice 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 “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased of late, the scammers will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can entail a significant financial, medical and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to health.
Criminals can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page 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 ensure this is correctly licensed.
