Ebay UK is being used to sell illegal weapons such as vicious stun guns which can temporarily disable victims by delivering massive electric shocks. Although the online auction service prohibits the sale of firearms on its site - including the sale of "high voltage electric stunning devices" - stun guns are still openly available on eBay UK.
The availability of illegal weapons online is causing such concern that one prominent MP has warned that sites such as eBay "cannot be allowed to be the Internet equivalent of a dodgy car boot sale".
Anyone carrying out a simple search of eBay"s UK Web site can easily find a list of illegal weapons for sale. Indeed, following a tip-off from a reader, The Register found ten separate auctions listed on Friday for these illegal weapons. One of the devices, which delivers a punch of 180,000 Volts, looks just like a mobile phone. Another weapon looks like a pocket-sized torch. Typically, these items cost less than £100.
One advert said: "This is the security plus stun gun it has the reliability and strength of the best. 100,000 volts of power is more than enough to instantly control your attacker on contact.