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You have come across so much about people using slimming jabs to lose weight, you feel the moment has come to give it a go in the run-up to the festive season. However, the issue lies in cost.

But it seems there are other options rather than getting a prescription and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS arrives giving a link to a site with much cheaper medication – and requiring no necessity to go through official channels. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on social media the other day, prompting you to go for it.

The catch is these ads are almost certainly scams. At best, you will be sent nothing and lose any funds you paid. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.

The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a increase in counterfeit products entering circulation and deceptive practices established to merely steal people’s money.

Medical regulators have warned against purchasing such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from aesthetic clinics, fake pharmacy websites or via social media, saying they could contain “harmful substances and other ingredients that could cause genuine injury”.

New figures from a major retail bank reveal a sharp rise in the number of customers who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities related to weight loss injections, pens, pills and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was over twice the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.

“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.

How It Appears

The majority take place on communication platforms and social media. On socials, a profile may mimic the brand that you are looking for, but you'll often notice subtle differences in text or logos.

The messages or updates will often use pressure-inducing language such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.

With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose recently, the fraudsters will price their “product” lower.

“Buying from unapproved vendors online can entail a significant monetary, medical and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.

Recommended Actions

Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, it likely isn't genuine.

Health regulators have warned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. 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 health.

Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or social media page look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy located within the UK, you can check the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is properly registered.