Scammers' Fake Products 'Could Cause Serious Damage'
You've come across a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel 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 rather than getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. A text message comes through giving a link to a website with much cheaper medication – and requiring no need to navigate official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms recently, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you paid. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a increase in fake goods entering circulation and scams established to merely steal people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against buying these illegal slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, saying they could contain “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the number of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams soaring in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
Most occur on communication platforms and social media. On socials, an account may mimic the brand that you are looking for, but there will typically be subtle differences in text or logos.
The messages or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can entail a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
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Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Criminals can go to great lengths to design their webpage or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure they are correctly licensed.
