You have heard and read so much 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.
But it seems alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and going to the pharmacy. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and lose whatever money you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has led to a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices set up to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through social media, stating they might include “toxins and additional components that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the fraud. According to the bank, the total sum lost to scams related to slimming jabs, pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was more than double the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
The majority take place on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
The messages or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the scammers will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a significant financial, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm they are correctly licensed.
