Scammers' Fake Goods 'Could Cause Real Harm'
You've come across a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to get slim, you feel it is time to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is cost.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. A text message arrives giving a link to a site with more affordable drugs – and with no need to go through official channels. And you saw a similar ad on online platforms recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you spent. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has led to a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via social media, saying they might include “harmful substances and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the number of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities related to weight loss injections, pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the prior quarter. The average scam sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, an account may mimic the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in spelling or brand marks.
These communications or posts will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased recently, the fraudsters will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a serious financial, medical and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage applies: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. These products must 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 wellbeing.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is correctly licensed.
