Scammers' Fake Products 'May Lead to Serious Damage'

You've heard and read a great deal about people using weight loss injections to get slim, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is expense.

Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. An SMS arrives giving a link to a site with more affordable medication – and with no necessity to go through proper procedures. You also noticed a similar ad on online platforms recently, prompting you to take the plunge.

The catch is such promotions are highly likely to be fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent nothing and lose whatever money you paid. In the worst, you obtain a fake version, with unknown ingredients that could lead to serious medical issues.

The popularity of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a rise in counterfeit products hitting the market and deceptive practices set up to merely steal consumers' cash.

Health authorities have advised avoiding buying these illegal slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through social media, saying they might include “toxins and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.

Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the number of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. The bank says, the total sum stolen through fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, injector pens, pills and fat-dissolving products during the third quarter , was over twice the total sum stolen in the prior quarter. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.

“Scammers are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.

What it looks like

The majority take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the brand that you are looking for, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.

The messages or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.

With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, rose recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.

“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a significant financial, medical and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.

What to do

Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying applies: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.

Medical authorities have warned people to be extremely cautious when purchasing medications online. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription provided by a healthcare professional, it says. When procured from other sources, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.

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 based in Great Britain, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is correctly licensed.