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You've come across a great deal about people using weight loss injections to lose weight, it feels like the moment has come to try them out ahead of the holiday period. The problem is cost.

But it seems there are other options instead of obtaining a doctor's script and visiting the pharmacy. An SMS comes through providing a URL to a site with much cheaper drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. And you saw a similar ad on social media recently, prompting you to go for it.

The problem is such promotions are almost certainly fraudulent schemes. At best, you will be sent no product and forfeit whatever money you spent. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.

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

Health authorities have warned against purchasing such unlawful weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order 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 high street bank show a significant surge in the number of clients who have been affected by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money lost to scams related to weight loss injections, injector pens, tablets 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, reports indicate.

“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in the past few months,” notes a bank’s head of fraud.

How It Appears

The majority take place on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, a profile may imitate the company that you seek, but there will typically be subtle differences in spelling or logos.

The messages or updates will frequently use urgency-laden phrases such as “limited-time offer”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.

As the price of some legitimate slimming injections, has increased recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” more cheaply.

“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can come at a serious financial, medical and emotional cost,” says the security specialist.

Recommended Actions

As with all scams, the old adage applies: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.

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 healthcare professional, it says. If sourced elsewhere, they can present significant dangers to health.

Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. Should they state to be an online pharmacy located within Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm this is properly registered.