Scammers' Fake Goods 'Could Cause Serious Damage'
You've come across so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to get slim, you feel the moment has come to try them out ahead of the holiday period. The problem is expense.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. An SMS comes through giving a link to a site with more affordable drugs – and requiring no need to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a similar ad on social media the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is these ads are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and forfeit whatever money you paid. At worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams set up to simply take consumers' cash.
Medical regulators have warned against purchasing such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or via social media, stating they might include “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of clients who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the total sum lost to scams related to weight loss injections, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was over twice the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
The majority occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, an account may mimic the company that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or brand marks.
The messages or updates will frequently use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.
With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, rose recently, the scammers will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers on the internet can entail a serious financial, medical and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script issued by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose serious risks to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.