You've come across a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like it is time to give it a go in the run-up to the holiday period. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper drugs – and with no need to navigate official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, prompting you to take the plunge.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly scams. At best, you'll receive no product and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components which may result in severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via social media, saying they could contain “toxins and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the number of clients who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was over twice the total sum stolen in the previous three months. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most take place on communication platforms and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the brand that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.
These communications or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors online can come at a serious monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines online. They should only be obtained from a licensed chemist with a valid script provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are properly registered.
