Auction Fraud

Auction fraud encompasses several deceptive practices on platforms that allow competitive bidding or peer-to-peer sales. Non-delivery fraud — the most common form — involves a seller accepting payment and never shipping the item. Misrepresentation fraud involves items that are counterfeit, damaged, or substantially different from the listing description. Shill bidding occurs when sellers use fake accounts to artificially inflate auction prices.

Payment fraud is a related risk: sellers may be targeted by buyers using stolen payment credentials, then asked to refund an 'overpayment' after the fraudulent payment is reversed. Buyers who agree to pay outside the platform's protected payment system — often encouraged by scammers with lower-price offers — lose all chargeback and dispute protections.

Protections include using only the platform's built-in payment and messaging systems, researching seller feedback history, treating prices far below market value as a red flag, and being cautious of last-minute requests to complete transactions off-platform.