You've heard and read so much about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to try them out ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.
But it seems there are other options rather than getting a prescription and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper medication – and with no need to navigate official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The problem is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you paid. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in fake goods entering circulation and scams set up to simply take people’s money.
Medical regulators have warned against buying such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through digital platforms, 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 number of customers who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money stolen through scams involving weight loss injections, pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was more than double the total sum lost in the previous three months. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
What it looks like
The majority take place on communication platforms and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be subtle differences in text or logos.
These communications or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose recently, the scammers will price their “item” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can come at a serious financial, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is correctly licensed.
