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The General Pharmaceutical Council says it has followed up on a report by ITV News that people have been able to obtain weight management medicines from three online pharmacies without the proper checks being carried out.

A story broadcast on 6 January reported that young people with healthy BMIs are using AI and simple photo-editing software to fake their weight and gain access to weight-loss drugs.

ITV digital reporter Cree-Summer Houghton used basic editing software to widen her waist, face, and body before uploading the images. Within a week, three different on-line pharmacies – which were not identified in her report - had sent her weight loss injections.

She also spoke to three other women who had been accepted in the same way, sometimes with only a single edited image.

While some online pharmacies made it impossible to use AI-altered images - requesting live video consultations, photos next to a scale or real-time verification - others relied on uploaded photos alone, she reported.

Roz Gittins, chief pharmacy officer at the General Pharmaceutical Council, said in response to the report: “We have inspected all three of these pharmacies. Two were not meeting all of our standards, and one remains under investigation. To protect the public, we are taking action so they make improvements to meet our standards.

“Our guidance is clear that when prescribing medicines used for weight management, the information provided by the person, including their weight, height and/or body mass index must be checked.”

Interviewed by ITV News, Roz Gittins said the GPhC had so far acted against 18 pharmacies that had not followed its guidelines.