You have come across so much about people using slimming jabs to get slim, you feel it is time to try them out in the run-up to the holiday period. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS comes through providing a URL to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you paid. At worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The widespread use of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in fake goods entering circulation and deceptive practices established to simply take consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying these illegal weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or via social media, stating they could contain “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the total sum lost to scams related to 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 prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most occur on messaging apps and social media. On socials, a profile may mimic the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or brand marks.
The messages or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased of late, the fraudsters will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a significant monetary, health-related and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. These products must only be obtained 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.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is correctly licensed.
