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You have come across a great deal about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, you feel it is time to try them out ahead of the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.

Yet it appears alternatives exist instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the chemist. A text message arrives providing a URL to a website with much cheaper medication – and requiring no need to go through official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media recently, so you decide to take the plunge.

The catch is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you'll receive no product and lose whatever money you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.

The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in fake goods entering circulation and scams set up to simply take consumers' cash.

Health authorities have advised avoiding purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from aesthetic clinics, bogus online chemists or through social media, saying they might include “toxins and additional components which may provoke genuine injury”.

New figures from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the number of clients who have been affected by the fraud. According to the bank, the total sum stolen through scams involving slimming jabs, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was more than double the overall amount stolen in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.

“Scammers are deliberately targeting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in recent months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.

How It Appears

Most take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or logos.

These communications or updates will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “free giveaway”.

With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.

“Buying from unverified sellers online can entail a serious financial, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.

Recommended Actions

Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: if it appears overly advantageous, then it probably is.

Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script provided by a healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to health.

Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site 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 online portal of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to ensure they are properly registered.