Online shoppers warned of ‘dangerous’ weight-loss scam as ‘ghost stores’ impersonate real people to sell Ozempic-like treatments

Dietitian Lyndi Cohen says her likeness is being ‘abused and misrepresented’ as websites posing as Australian businesses claim to offer GLP-1 substances

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Online “ghost stores” masquerading as Australian businesses have expanded into advertising Ozempic-like weight loss treatments, and are impersonating real people, including a well-known dietitian, to recommend their products.

After uncovering more than 140 sites falsely claiming to be Australian fashion retailers that prompted a public warning from the consumer regulator, Guardian Australia has identified a new scam that targets people trying to lose weight.