The most popular way to attack protocols that provide anonymity to the participants is to use the provided anonymity to cheat. It is then very difficult to trace the cheaters and special mechanisms must be present in the protocols to help with that task. We will discuss the example of anonymous auctions and the various ways participants can cheat. We will refine the proposed protocols to support "identity escrow", so that the identity of the cheaters can be revealed, by a third party, if the protocol has not been followed.
A proposed "money escrow" scheme will also be introduced, where the identity of the cheaters will remain secret but they will lose some money. Further mechanisms to protect legitimate users from the misuse of this system are also needed. A discussion of the properties of the escrow agencies and the payment protocols needed to support "money escrow" will be presented.