🔗 Share this article

You've come across a great deal regarding the use of slimming jabs to get slim, it feels like it is time to try them out ahead of the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.

But it seems alternatives exist rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the chemist. An SMS arrives providing a URL to a website with more affordable drugs – and with no need to navigate official channels. You also noticed a similar ad on social media the other day, prompting you to go for it.

The problem is these ads are highly likely to be scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent nothing and lose any funds you paid. At worst, you receive a fake version, containing unspecified components which may result in severe health problems.

The popularity of legitimate weight loss medications has led to a rise in fake goods entering circulation and deceptive practices set up to simply take consumers' cash.

Health authorities have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via social media, saying they could contain “toxins and additional components which may provoke real harm”.

New figures from a high street bank show a significant surge in the number of clients who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the total sum lost to fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, injector pens, pills and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was more than double the total sum lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.

“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” says a bank’s head of fraud.

How It Appears

The majority occur on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or brand marks.

These communications or posts will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “exclusive deal” or “complimentary gift”.

With the cost of some legitimate slimming injections, rose of late, the fraudsters will price their “item” more cheaply.

“Buying from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious monetary, health-related and psychological toll,” warns the security specialist.

What to do

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

Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications via the web. These products must only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to wellbeing.

Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are properly registered.