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You have heard and read so much regarding the use of weight loss injections to get slim, you feel the moment has come to try them out in the run-up to the festive season. The problem is cost.

Yet it appears alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the chemist. An SMS comes through giving a link to a site with more affordable drugs – and requiring no necessity to navigate proper procedures. You also noticed a comparable advertisement on online platforms the other day, so you decide to take the plunge.

The problem is these ads are almost certainly scams. In the best-case scenario, you will be sent no product and lose any funds you spent. At worst, you receive a counterfeit item, with unknown ingredients which may result in serious medical issues.

The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has led to a rise in fake goods entering circulation and scams established to merely steal people’s money.

Health authorities have advised avoiding buying such unlawful slimming medications without a prescription from beauty salons, bogus online chemists or via social media, stating they might include “harmful substances and additional components that could cause real harm”.

Recent statistics from a major retail bank show a sharp rise in the quantity of customers who have been impacted by the scam. The bank says, the amount of money stolen through scams related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September this year, was more than double the overall amount lost in the previous three months. Each incident typically costs victims £120, reports indicate.

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

What it looks like

The majority take place on messaging apps and social media. On socials, a profile may mimic the brand that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in spelling or logos.

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

With the cost of certain authentic weight loss jabs, has increased of late, the fraudsters will price their “item” more cheaply.

“Purchasing from unapproved vendors online can come at a significant monetary, medical and psychological toll,” warns the fraud expert.

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As with all scams, the wise saying applies: if it appears overly advantageous, then it probably is.

Health regulators have cautioned people to be highly vigilant when buying medicines online. They should only be obtained from a licensed chemist using a prescription provided by a medical practitioner, it says. When procured from other sources, they may pose significant dangers to health.

Fraudsters can go to great lengths to make their site or online profile look as authentic as possible. If they claim to be an online pharmacy based in Great Britain, it's possible to verify the website of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.