Fraudsters' Fake Products 'May Lead to Serious Damage'
You have heard and read a great deal about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come 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 rather than getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. A text message comes through providing a URL to a site with much cheaper medication – and with no need to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, so you decide to go for it.
The catch is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you'll receive no product and forfeit any funds you spent. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components which may result in severe health problems.
The popularity 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 warned against buying 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 that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank show a significant surge in the number of customers who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum stolen through scams related to slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter this year, was more than double the overall amount lost in the previous three months. The average scam costs victims £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting people’s insecurities and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.
How It Appears
Most occur on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, a profile may imitate the brand that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in spelling or logos.
The messages or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, rose of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can come at a serious financial, medical and emotional cost,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
As with all scams, the old adage holds true: if it appears too good to be true, then it probably is.
Health regulators have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present serious risks to health.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, it's possible to verify the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to ensure this is properly registered.
