ASA Ruling on weight-loss service adverts

The ASA ruled against Juniper Technologies UK Ltd after investigating two Facebook posts promoting its weight‑loss services. The posts appeared in support groups discussing drugs such as Wegovy and Mounjaro and were written by individuals hired by Juniper to share “authentic” comments. Because these individuals were paid and acting on Juniper’s behalf, the ASA determined the posts were marketing communications under the CAP Code. 

The regulator found the posts were not clearly identifiable as ads. They appeared to come from ordinary users, included personal‑style endorsements, and lacked any labels such as “#ad” to signal commercial intent. This meant they breached rules requiring marketing communications to be obviously recognisable as such. 

The ASA also upheld a second breach: both posts referenced prescription‑only medicines (POMs), including Wegovy and Mounjaro. The CAP Code prohibits advertising POMs to the public, regardless of context. As a result, the ASA instructed Juniper not to run similar ads again, to ensure future marketing is clearly identifiable, and to avoid any promotion of prescription‑only medicines.