Scammers' Fake Products 'Could Cause Real Harm'
You've heard and read a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like it is time to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.
Yet it appears there are other options instead of getting a prescription and going to the chemist. A text message comes through providing a URL to a website with more affordable medication – and with no necessity to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media recently, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent no product and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a increase in fake goods entering circulation and deceptive practices set up to merely steal people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or via social media, saying they might include “harmful substances and additional components that could cause genuine injury”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of clients who have been affected by the fraud. According to the bank, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities involving slimming jabs, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in recent months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
The majority occur on messaging apps and social media. On socials, an account may mimic the company that you seek, but there will typically be subtle differences in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a significant financial, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: should something seem overly advantageous, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to health.
Criminals can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within Great Britain, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are properly registered.
