Ah, yes - it is an eBay UK thing. In ALL auctions generated from the UK or Ireland, the bidder's identity is a randomised code. So a bidder with the user name of kiltsforme, could be called o678m, because there is an o and an m in his user name. How that benefits anyone, eBay can't rightly say. It is supposed to be for our protection - so I hope everybody feels safer, now.

They have a second level of security above that. If a vendor decides to hold a private sale, all the bidders identities become, Bidder1, Bidder2, Bidder3, etc ... But the kicker is that Bidder3 could be the third BID, or he could be the third bidder - no way of telling. So when you see an auction with 27 Bidders, you don't know if you have to fend off 27 others, or there are two people going head to head. Oh, the joy. Oh, the excitement.

Regards

Chas