Fraudsters' Fake Products 'May Lead to Real Harm'
You have heard and read a great deal regarding the use of weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like 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 rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. An SMS comes through giving a link to a site with much cheaper medication – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you paid. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in fake goods hitting the market and scams set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have advised avoiding buying such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, stating they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause 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 fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
The majority take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, an account may imitate the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or brand marks.
The messages or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Buying from unverified sellers online can come at a serious financial, medical and psychological toll,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines via the web. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or online profile appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within Great Britain, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is correctly licensed.