blueangel_78

So I've been surfing eBay for some 1:400 dragon stuff, and it just seems like each military item is being bid on by the same person. But no harm in that. But what gets me is that the bidders on each auction have id's that are way too similar....for example:

o***i( 355Feedback score is 100 to 499) US $35.00
Apr-25-08 19:54:56 PDT

5***b( 464Feedback score is 100 to 499) US $34.00
Apr-26-08 15:35:56 PDT

i***1( 49Feedback score is 10 to 49) US $25.00
Apr-26-08 12:13:28 PDT

i***1( 49Feedback score is 10 to 49) US $22.00
Apr-26-08 12:13:17 PDT

i***1( 49Feedback score is 10 to 49) US $20.00
Apr-26-08 12:13:05 PDT

i***1( 49Feedback score is 10 to 49) US $15.00
Apr-25-08 17:45:02 PDT

k***r( 264Feedback score is 100 to 499) US $10.00
Apr-24-08 21:47:36 PDT

n***a( 16Feedback score is 10 to 49) US $1.04
Apr-25-08 16:09:11 PDT

What gives? So they are different people, but the id's are the exact same format. Too much of a coincidence. And basically they are just driving the price up.

Something seems fishy too me.

Rant over....

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CitationDrvr

Ebay actually hides the bidders full id name from other potential buyers. The only one who can see the real bidder's id tag is the person who posts the bid. For instance, if a bidder's name is jetz, it will show up in public as j**z. Hope this clears it up a bit for you!

blueangel_78

Didn't know that! I stand corrected and am a n00b.

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fazeman

Was wondering the samething myself. Thanks for the information.

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N. Eberhard

Not all auctions have the 'masked' bidder IDs on them. All of the auctions above a certain dollar amount do, plus those auctions that the seller has chosen to use the 'masked' ID feature. None of my auctions have the 'masked' IDs on them.

It came about due to the unacceptable rate of buyers getting unsolicited offers to buying outside of ebay.

champpitbull2

The only time I have seen hidden names with is with the high dollar stuff such as cars. When it comes to planes I have never seen that. I always wondered what would stop a person from opening up more than one account and then biding on their own auctions in order to drive up the price.

N. Eberhard

Nothing is stopping them so long as they have different information to submit under the 'fake' name.

The term for bidding on one's auctions and/or getting your buddy/wife/etc to do it is called 'bid shilling' and is highly against the rules.

StarAllianceFlyer

I can't shop on eBay because they've locked my account an hour after I opened it. Asked the seller about combined shipping, then whammo! Locked under the suspicion of fraud. Contacted eBay and they said the only way I can unlock it is if I provided them with copies of my bank statement or utility bill to prove I am who I say I am (it was the real eBay, and not some scam). Said no thanks, and end of story.

Did manage to open an account at eBay HK. Even used my credit card for identity confirmation. 6 hrs after I opened it my account got locked again. Contacted eBay HK and they said their US counterpart locked my account.

Ironically, I've had a PayPal account for years now using the same email address as the first eBay account that I opened and had no trouble there.