Whether or not the practice was scammy has be discussed
ad nauseam already in this thread. I would refer back to my previous statement on the matter:
I would draw everyone's attention to the
Uniform Commercial Code of the United States, which states in section
2-328 (4):
If the auctioneer knowingly receives a bid on the seller's behalf or the seller makes or procures such a bid, and
notice has not been given that liberty for such bidding is reserved, the buyer may at his option avoid the sale or take the goods at the price of the last good faithbid prior to the completion of the sale.
[Emphasis added]You did not provide advance notice, therefore you acted unlawfully.
Read the quote you quoted. There's nothing unlawful or scammy in this behavior. Not providing advance notice doesn't make it unlawful or scammy. Also, for the sake of it, I'm not US citizen. Also, as I've said earlier, I will (and have since) presented clearly if there's a reserve price of any kind. This is to increase transparency, as concealed reserve price is not common here.
Btw, the same section you quoted also says:§ 2-328. Sale by Auction.
(3) Such a sale is with reserve unless the goods are in explicit terms put up without reserve. In an auction with reserve the auctioneer may withdraw the goods at any time until he announces completion of the sale.
First of all, nobody was scammed. Auction was held according to the stated rules.
I don't remember if we got an answer to the question of whether you sold the item to the highest bidder that wasn't you at the price of their original bid. If you didn't, then they were scammed out of a fair win. Regardless, however, a scam does not have to have happened for someone to be labelled a scammer, which is commonplace across the forum.
The item was sold to the highest bidder, that being me. Second highest bidder did not win the item. Yes, I was also the auctioneer of the item. Your definition of a scam, or attempted scam, or whatever related to scamming, seems to be out of the line.