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You've come across so much regarding the use of slimming jabs to lose weight, it feels like it is time to give it a go ahead of the festive season. However, the issue lies in expense.

But it seems there are other options instead of getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. An SMS comes through giving a link to a site with more affordable medication – and requiring no need to go through proper procedures. And you saw a comparable advertisement on social media recently, 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 nothing and lose whatever money you paid. In the worst, you receive a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components that could lead to serious medical issues.

The popularity of authentic weight loss medications has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products 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 via digital platforms, stating they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke genuine injury”.

Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money stolen through fraudulent activities involving weight loss injections, pens, tablets and fat-dissolving products between July and September , was more than double the overall amount lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, it says.

“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and medical worries, with such frauds soaring in recent months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.

How It Appears

The majority occur on messaging apps and social media. Across platforms, a profile may mimic the company that you are looking for, but there will typically be subtle differences in text or brand marks.

The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.

With the cost of certain authentic slimming injections, has increased recently, the scammers will set the cost of their “product” lower.

“Buying from unverified sellers on the internet can come at a serious financial, health-related and emotional cost,” says the fraud expert.

What to do

As with all scams, the old adage applies: should something seem overly advantageous, it likely isn't genuine.

Medical authorities have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when purchasing medications online. They should solely be acquired from a registered pharmacy using a prescription issued by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to wellbeing.

Fraudsters can expend considerable effort to design their webpage 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 online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are properly registered.