I absolutely agree that what you describe is a horrible thing to do.

But I have to say, ebay is the last place on earth I'd go to buy something as basic as a 1 or 2GB flash drive. What, is $7 for a 2GB name-brand drive too much?

And how much do those unscrupulous sellers on ebay charge for shipping on that drive? Probably more than you can get from a legitimate retailer, bringing the price up to more than the ebay price. Even if it's slightly lower, the peace of mind I get from buying at a legit source is more than worth it.

I think you're seeing one of the many reasons that I never buy anything at ebay anymore. Fraud is simply rampant (and they do nothing about any of it), their fees for sellers are crazy, Paypal is annoying (and they don't help with fraud either), and in the end you don't really find a deal on there anymore (especially in electronics).

*edit*
You might also try brick and mortar stores for something like a flash drive. I was at my local computer store the other day, and they have bins of flash drives at every checkout counter. 2GB for $6.99, just like on Newegg.