You have heard and read so much about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS comes through providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and with no need to navigate official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on social media the other day, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent no product and forfeit any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, containing unspecified components which may result in severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in fake goods entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, 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 sharp rise in the number of clients who have been affected by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was over twice the overall amount lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring 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, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or logos.
These communications or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose recently, the scammers will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can entail a serious monetary, medical and emotional cost,” 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 buying medicines via the web. These products must only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm they are properly registered.