Auctions article: What Is Shill Bidding? And What Tactics Are Used?

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Most of us have used Ebay to bid on an item we thought was worth buying. Some people might even buy items which they see others bidding on because it looks appealing or because they feel as if they will miss out on a good buy. However, there are some sellers on Ebay that might have you believe they have an auction of an item with importance or more value than other buyers really place on it. Why? Because they are looking for an unsuspecting buyer who is willing to bid and buy an item at a false price. What are we talking about? Its called shill bidding. And I am going to tell you how you can avoid it.

There are different methods that a dishonest seller may use to shill bid. The first way a seller might do this is by bidding on their own items with a separate account. Or have friends bid on them. Many times a sign that a seller may be doing this is found in the bid history of an auction. If a bidder with low feedback such as 0 or even a few continues to bid on an item repeatedly in small increments it could very well be shill bidding. Beware of this. You would be wise to avoid even the risk of that only to find yourself not really getting the price you deserve.

The second way a seller may try to shill bid is by having a private auction. In this way they can conceal the bidding history so you can not check to see who is bidding. You should be wary of private auctions and try to discern whether the auction is private for a specific reason that bidders would not want their identities revealed.

The third way a seller could shill bid is a little newer tactic to Ebay. As a seller a second chance offer may be made to a buyer if the price does not meet the reserve. A shill bidder may conceal the auction by making it private or/and bidding on the auction himself or have a friend bid even though the bidding does not meet a reserve price. Then when the auction is over the seller may ask you if you would like the item at a close range to the top dollar price of your bid by using second chance offer. Beware of this tactic as well.

Shill bidding is dishonest and harmful to others in the Ebay community. Always be watchful of those who are not what they appear to be. Please visit the Ebay most watched auctions page for further tips and helpful hints when buying and selling on ebay.

JC Garcia maintains a Ebay most watched auctionswebsite.