Shills are nothing new
Speaking as one who comes from an agricultural background I can say that shill bidding in real life auctions is rife too. A great deal of livestock, from horses and cows to dogs and chickens are auctioned. Land is often auctioned and when a farmer gives up the contents of the farm are auctioned right down to the junk in the sheds. Shill bidding at these auctions is very common and in fact a lot of farmers will go to an auction just to make sure their friends "get a good price". If someone should accidentally buy it they just put it up for sale again, saying it was a misunderstanding.
The auctioneers know that it goes on but it is difficult to point the finger and say that someone was deliberately "bidding it up". The buyer may be perfectly genuine and it's possible that an action for defamation might result. It's up to the auctioneer's experience and discretion. But also it's up to the buyer not to pay "silly money" for things just to win the auction. This is very common among beginners.
>>> The trick with any auction is to decide in advance how much the goods are worth and then drop out when that level is reached.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
