Beware of Gym Scams: Protect Yourself From Fraudulent Fitness Offers and Trainers

As we usher in the new year, many of us set resolutions to improve our fitness, and the market is flooded with various promotions. Imagine scrolling through Facebook and spotting an ad from a local gym offering a significant discount on memberships for a limited time. You decide to sign up immediately due to the urgency and limited availability.

The excitement turns into frustration when, after making your payment, you discover the ad was a scam. You haven’t received any membership confirmation, and the gym confirms they have no record of your transaction.

This scenario is just one example of the many fitness-related scams that peak in January, as people are eager to lose weight and enhance their general health.

Other common scams include nonexistent personal trainers who sell generic training programs they claim are customized, or bogus fitness apps that are really just designed to steal your personal information.

According to Marijus Briedis, Chief Technology Officer at NordVPN, scammers often duplicate authentic advertisements or websites from reputable fitness businesses.

It can be challenging to distinguish authentic sites from fraudulent ones as the differences might only be minor, such as a few altered characters in the URL. Moreover, these fraudulent sites often appear as sponsored links in search results, misleading users who are looking for legitimate offers.

“The frenzy of new year fitness resolutions provides an ideal setting for these scams, as people tend to make hasty decisions without properly verifying the legitimacy of the offers,” Briedis explains.

He advises being wary of gym offers or training programs that use high-pressure sales tactics, such as insisting that you must sign up immediately to get a discount, especially if the seller provides scant contact information or lacks independent reviews.

NordVPN also cautions that scammers might use AI technologies to doctor images, enhancing muscle definition to fabricate impressive but deceitful success stories to attract customers.

Identifying a Fitness Fraud

The initial sign of a potential scam often appears as an ad on social media, promising low-cost gym memberships or personalized training plans starting in January. These ads usually create a false sense of urgency by claiming that only a limited number of spots are available at a discounted rate, or that the offer is valid for a very short period.

If you provide your payment details, Briedis notes, not only will the scammers withdraw the expected amount, but they might also keep your payment information for potential future fraudulent activities. This tactic mirrors other scams, such as those offering discounted vacations that never materialize.

“The primary aim is your money. If that fails, the secondary goal is to gather as much personal data as possible,” Briedis adds.

Steps to Take if You Suspect a Scam

If you click on a suspicious link, scrutinize the web address you land on. Often, the URL will contain small discrepancies, like the use of a zero in place of the letter ‘O’.

A safer approach is to avoid clicking on unsolicited links altogether, especially those in emails or messages claiming to be from fitness entities. If you encounter issues with a membership or subscription, it’s safer to navigate directly to the official website or app.

Be cautious of payment requests via bank transfer as these transactions do not offer the protections associated with credit card payments under section 75.

If you suspect you’ve been a victim of fraud, immediately contact your bank to report the incident and then inform Action Fraud, the UK’s national reporting center for fraud and cybercrime.