In a story reported at The Register a major European financial services group released a hard drive for sale on eBay without taking proper security measures to protect its data. Pointsec, a mobile security outfit purchased the hard drive for just £5.

Virtual Love for Sale, on the Sly
Wed February 4, 2004 10:21 AM ET
By Lisa Baertlein

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Need a girlfriend but want none of the hassle of actually spending time together? You better act fast if you want to find her on eBay.

Anonymous writes "Fraud on eBay... Say it ain't true!!

Jason Pit***** a resident of Rowlette, TX has stolen more than $150 thousand US dollars from would be buyers, me being one of them. At approximately $2500.00 being stolen from each individual. Some more. He has conspired to do this without giving the merchandise to all of his paying customers. There is even a website dedicated to catching this thief. (http://nails.ch/msgboard.mv)"

Slick eBay scam aims to steal your ID
By Bob Mims
The Salt Lake Tribune

From its carefully duplicated eBay logo to subtle manipulation of the online auctioneer's Internet addresses, the message arriving in e-mail inboxes Wednesday looked genuine.

Man gets probation for $25,000 eBay scam
By ALAN J. KEAYS
Herald Staff

A Rutland man who made more than $25,000 selling fake celebrity memorabilia over the Internet has avoided jail. In U.S. District Court in Burlington on Monday, Judge William Sessions sentenced John Landau, 42, to serve two years on probation. Landau had pleaded guilty earlier to mail and wire fraud.

Plainville man escapes attempted eBay scam
By JC REINDL ,
Special to The Bristol Press
10/14/2003

PLAINVILLE -- A Plainville resident narrowly escaped losing $4,000 last week by an allegedly fraudulent auction seller claiming to offer a fantastic deal on a snowmobile through the Internet.

EBay expands fraud protection for some sellers

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (AP) — In a bid to bolster user trust amid a rising tide of online auction fraud, eBay Tuesday announced expanded anti-fraud protection for those who buy items from the site's more trusted sellers.

Protect yourself from Internet auction fraud
West Des Moines Police Department
By TANYA ZAGLAUER

Steps to avoid becoming a victim at Internet auctions:
* Educate yourself on how Internet auctions work,
what your obligations are as a buyer and a seller before you bid.

EBay laptop fraud case widens
By Bob Mims
The Salt Lake Tribune

In what prosecutors say is the nation's marquee cyber fraud case, a federal grand jury has handed up a new indictment against a Utah man for allegedly bilking hundreds of would-be eBay laptop computer buyers.

Guard your personal data against e- mail scams

I don't know whether you've ever sold or bought anything on eBay , the world's largest online marketplace for selling goods and services by individuals and businesses. The eBay community has tens of millions of registered members around the globe. On any given day, there are more than 16 million items listed in 27,000 categories, and last year they accounted for $14.87 billion in sales.