You've heard and read 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.
But it seems alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper drugs – and with no necessity to navigate official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and lose any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in 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 consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or via digital platforms, stating they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the number of customers 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 this year, was over twice the total sum lost in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
Most occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, an account may mimic the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can come at a serious financial, health-related and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage holds true: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. These products must only be obtained from a licensed chemist with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. When procured from other sources, they may pose serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim 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.
