Fraudsters' Fake Products 'May Lead to Serious Damage'
You have come across a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel it is time to give it a go in the run-up to the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears there are other options rather than getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. A text message arrives giving a link to a website with much cheaper medication – and with no necessity to go through proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is these ads are highly likely to be scams. At best, you will be sent no product and lose any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, containing unspecified components that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has led to a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams set up to simply take people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via social media, stating they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been affected by the fraud. According to the bank, the total sum stolen through scams related to weight loss injections, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most occur on messaging apps 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.
The messages or posts will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a serious monetary, medical and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or online profile look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.
