The wild world of sneaker buying bots (2017)

“Grails” are one’s most coveted pair of sneakers, “bots” are software used to automate the online checkout process, and “copping” means a successful purchase. People are willing to pay for bots—which range from $10 browser extensions to $500 standalone software programs—because the resale value is often much higher on secondary markets, such as StockX, the “stock market” for sneakers. The Nike and Adidas sneaker apps both add layers of security, such as additional questions (to suss out bots), or “raffles” that give the winners a unique link for purchasing new releases.

Source: motherboard.vice.com