Fraudsters' Counterfeit Products 'Could Cause Serious Damage'
You've heard and read so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, you feel it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is expense.
But it seems alternatives exist instead of getting a prescription and going to the chemist. An SMS arrives giving a link to a site with more affordable medication – and with no need to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive nothing and forfeit whatever money you paid. At 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 resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to simply take people’s money.
Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through social media, saying they might include “toxins and other ingredients that could cause real harm”.
New figures from a major retail bank reveal a significant surge in the number of customers who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter , was more than double the total sum lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most occur on messaging apps and social networks. On socials, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or logos.
The messages or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.
As the price of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can entail a significant financial, health-related and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.
Recommended Actions
Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage applies: if it appears too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.
Medical authorities have cautioned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. They should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.
