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You've heard and read so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to get slim, it feels like the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the holiday period. However, the issue lies in expense.

But it seems there are other options rather than obtaining a doctor's script and going to the pharmacy. An SMS arrives giving a link to a website with more affordable medication – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, prompting you to go for it.

The catch is these ads are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent no product and forfeit any funds you paid. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in severe health problems.

The popularity of authentic slimming drugs has resulted in a increase in fake goods hitting the market and scams set up to simply take people’s money.

Health authorities have warned against purchasing these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via digital platforms, saying they might include “toxins and other ingredients that could cause genuine injury”.

New figures from a major retail bank show a significant surge in the number of clients who have been impacted by the fraud. According to the bank, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was more than double the overall amount lost in the previous three months. The average scam costs victims £120, it says.

“Fraudsters are deliberately targeting people’s insecurities and medical worries, with these scams skyrocketing in the past few months,” notes a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.

How It Appears

The majority occur on communication platforms and social media. On socials, an account may imitate the company that you are looking for, but you'll often notice slight variations in text or brand marks.

The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “exclusive deal” or “free giveaway”.

With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose of late, the scammers will set the cost of their “item” more cheaply.

“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can entail a significant monetary, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.

What to do

Like any deceptive scheme, the old adage holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.

Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription 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 online profile appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist located within the UK, it's possible to verify the website of the pharmaceutical regulatory body to confirm this is correctly licensed.