A FORMAL APPROACH TO DETECTING SHILLING BEHAVIORS IN CONCURRENT ONLINE AUCTIONS

Yi-Tsung Cheng, Haiping Xu Computer

2006

Abstract

Shilling behaviors are one of the most serious fraud problems in online auctions, which make winning bidders have to pay more than what they should pay for auctioned items. In concurrent online auctions, where multiple auctions for the same type of items are running simultaneously, shilling behaviors can be even more severe because detecting, predicting and preventing such fraudulent behaviors become very difficult. In this paper, we propose a formal approach to detecting shilling behaviors in concurrent online auctions using model checking techniques. We first develop a model template that represents two concurrent online auctions in Promela. Based on the model template, we derive an auction model that simulates the bidding processes of two concurrent auctions. Then we use the SPIN model checker to formally verify if the auction model satisfies any questionable behavioral properties that are written in LTL (Linear Temporal Logic) formulas. Thus, our approach simplifies the problem of searching for shilling behaviors in concurrent online auctions into a model checking problem. Finally, we provide a case study to illustrate how our approach can effectively detect possible shill bidders.

Paper Citation

in Harvard Style

Cheng Y. and Xu Computer H. (2006). A FORMAL APPROACH TO DETECTING SHILLING BEHAVIORS IN CONCURRENT ONLINE AUCTIONS . In Proceedings of the Eighth International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems - Volume 3: ICEIS, ISBN 978-972-8865-43-6, pages 375-381. DOI: 10.5220/0002460803750381

in Bibtex Style

@conference{iceis06,
author={Yi-Tsung Cheng and Haiping Xu Computer},
title={A FORMAL APPROACH TO DETECTING SHILLING BEHAVIORS IN CONCURRENT ONLINE AUCTIONS},
booktitle={Proceedings of the Eighth International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems - Volume 3: ICEIS,},
year={2006},
pages={375-381},
publisher={SciTePress},
organization={INSTICC},
doi={10.5220/0002460803750381},
isbn={978-972-8865-43-6},
}

in EndNote Style

TY - CONF
JO - Proceedings of the Eighth International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems - Volume 3: ICEIS,
TI - A FORMAL APPROACH TO DETECTING SHILLING BEHAVIORS IN CONCURRENT ONLINE AUCTIONS
SN - 978-972-8865-43-6
AU - Cheng Y.
AU - Xu Computer H.
PY - 2006
SP - 375
EP - 381
DO - 10.5220/0002460803750381