Fraudsters' Counterfeit Goods 'May Lead to Real Harm'
You have heard and read a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, you feel the moment has come to try them out ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in cost.
Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no necessity to navigate official channels. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, so you decide to go for it.
The problem is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you receive a fake version, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.
The widespread use of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and scams established to merely steal consumers' cash.
Health authorities have warned against buying such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or through social media, saying they could contain “harmful substances and additional components that could cause real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the number of clients who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions during the third quarter this year, was more than double the total sum lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.
“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with these scams soaring in the past few months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.
What it looks like
Most occur on communication platforms and social networks. On socials, an account may imitate the company that you seek, but you'll often notice slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased of late, the fraudsters will price their “product” more cheaply.
“Purchasing from unverified sellers online can come at a significant monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.
What to do
As with all scams, the wise saying applies: if it appears overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.
Health regulators have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present serious risks to wellbeing.
Fraudsters can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is correctly licensed.
