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4 Scale · 01-09-2018, 09:30 AM

Since the shill must place bids, sometimes the shill will win, it's sort of an occupational hazard.

It doesn't take many successful big scores to cover the transaction fees incurred when the shill "wins". The shill's odds are at least 50/50 on every auction, maybe better if he's good. Multiple wins by the same bidder mean the team is active - what you are not seeing is all the times the shill "lost" (after bidding the item up), which should be equal to or exceed his number of wins given the 50/50 or better odds.

Or, maybe this one bidder just really likes this one seller. That's the beauty of the shill con, it's hard to prove. However when experts on market value (such as members of this forum) are noting items selling way in excess of market, and the seller/bidder appear to have history, it is reasonable to assume the shill con.

While this particular con seems obvious, some shills can be very difficult to spot. The only sure defense against shills to it know the market of what you're bidding on, and don't bid above that value.

01-09-2018, 09:30 AM	#7
4 Scale User Join Date: Nov 2014 Posts: 544 Thanks: 194 Thanked 490 Times in 251 Posts	Since the shill must place bids, sometimes the shill will win, it's sort of an occupational hazard. It doesn't take many successful big scores to cover the transaction fees incurred when the shill "wins". The shill's odds are at least 50/50 on every auction, maybe better if he's good. Multiple wins by the same bidder mean the team is active - what you are not seeing is all the times the shill "lost" (after bidding the item up), which should be equal to or exceed his number of wins given the 50/50 or better odds. Or, maybe this one bidder just really likes this one seller. That's the beauty of the shill con, it's hard to prove. However when experts on market value (such as members of this forum) are noting items selling way in excess of market, and the seller/bidder appear to have history, it is reasonable to assume the shill con. While this particular con seems obvious, some shills can be very difficult to spot. The only sure defense against shills to it know the market of what you're bidding on, and don't bid above that value. Last edited by 4 Scale; 01-09-2018 at 10:22 AM.