Scammers' Fake Products 'Could Cause Serious Damage'
You have come across a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. A text message arrives giving a link to a website with much cheaper drugs – and with no necessity to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on social media recently, prompting you to go for it.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent nothing and forfeit any funds you paid. At worst, you receive a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in fake goods entering circulation and scams set up to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, stating they might include “harmful substances and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money lost to scams involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September this year, was over twice the total sum lost in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you are looking for, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or logos.
These communications or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased of late, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can come at a significant financial, medical and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage applies: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page 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.
