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Health and medical scams exploit fear, hope and urgency around illness. They range from fake online pharmacies and 'miracle cure' products to bogus health insurance, fake clinical trials and medical identity theft. Beyond the financial loss, some of these scams put your health and personal data directly at risk. The defences are to verify providers through official registers, never buy prescription medicines from unverified sellers, and treat 'guaranteed cure' claims as a warning sign.
Websites posing as licensed pharmacies that sell counterfeit, substandard, or entirely absent medications — and harvest payment details.
Products falsely claiming to cure, prevent, or treat serious medical conditions — exploiting people seeking hope or alternatives to conventional treatment.
Fraudulent policies that collect premiums but provide no real coverage, leaving victims with large medical bills.
Criminals use your identity to obtain medical treatment, prescriptions, or insurance benefits — leaving you with fraudulent records and unexpected bills.
Products claiming to cause significant weight loss without diet or exercise changes — often sold via aggressive subscription traps.
Fraudulent 'research' opportunities that extract fees, personal information, or expose participants to harm under the guise of medical studies.
Counterfeit, substandard, or never-delivered medical devices sold online — from PPE to oxygen concentrators and diagnostic devices.
Apps and platforms claiming to provide professional therapy or mental health support that harvest sensitive data, impose hidden subscription fees, or provide no qualified support.
Fraudulent rehabilitation centres and programmes that exploit people seeking help for substance use — taking payment without providing proper care.
Plans marketed as dental or vision insurance that provide minimal or no real coverage, often structured as unregulated discount schemes.
Criminal supply chains that distribute counterfeit, adulterated, or substandard branded medicines through unofficial channels, causing direct health harm alongside financial loss.
Heavily marketed health supplements sold through deceptive free-trial offers that hide recurring high-cost subscription charges in difficult-to-cancel billing arrangements.
Fraudulent fundraising campaigns that fabricate or exaggerate medical emergencies to collect donations from generous individuals, with funds going to the scammer rather than any genuine patient.
Fraudulent diet and weight loss programs that charge recurring subscription fees for coaching, meal plans, or supplements that are never delivered or have no meaningful effect.
Fraudulent therapy platforms or individuals posing as qualified counsellors who collect payments for sessions with unqualified or non-existent practitioners.
Fraudulent notices recruiting participants for fake medical trials, collecting fees or personal information under the guise of legitimate research.
Fake or unregistered online consultation services that charge patients for worthless or dangerous medical advice, collect sensitive health data, and issue illegitimate prescriptions.
Patients are charged for services never rendered, billed for more expensive treatments than received, or enrolled in programmes without consent — leaving them with inflated medical bills.
Fake or misleading pharmacy discount cards that charge membership fees for minimal savings, harvest personal health data, or misrepresent themselves as insurance.
Fraudulent personal emergency response devices sold to older adults or people with health conditions that do not work, charge hidden subscription fees, or are never delivered.