Virginity auction

[4] In another notable hoax, in August 1999, an alleged 17-year-old male American high school senior named Francis D. Cornworth posted an auction for his virginity on eBay.

However, the Weekly World News was a largely fictional publication; the front-page headline in the same issue announced that Noah's Ark had been discovered in Iraq.

[8][9] In late January 2004, the British tabloid News of the World reported that 18-year-old lesbian Rosie Reid was auctioning her virginity to pay for her school tuition.

[10] The NOTW subsequently reported in March 2004 that Rosie had sold her virginity for £8,400 to a 44-year-old BT engineer and divorced father of two children, and that she and her partner were upset by the experience.

In March 2005, 18-year-old Peruvian model Graciela Yataco was reported to be offering to sell her virginity to help her poor family and sick mother.

In April 2005, she retracted the plan, reportedly turning down a $1.5 million offer from a Canadian man, and denying that the event had been a publicity stunt.

[2][16][17] In September 2008, a 22-year-old American woman calling herself Natalie Dylan announced on The Howard Stern Show that she would auction off her virginity on the Moonlite BunnyRanch website, and that the act would be consummated at the ranch.

It also appears that the transaction was never consummated, as Hof stated: "It didn't work out, but she still made $250,000 out of the deal," referencing a $250,000 deposit put up by an Australian businessman who later backed out after reconciling with his ex-wife.

[22] In September 2008, Italian model Raffaella Fico reported in an interview that she would auction off her virginity for one million Euros, but this appeared to be a publicity-seeking claim.

[26] In May 2009, it was reported that 18-year-old Romanian Alina Percea had successfully auctioned her virginity for 10,000 euros to a 45-year-old Italian man, advertising the offer on a German dating site.

[28] In 2014, Romanian press reported that Alina had returned to Romania and had posted many sexy photos of herself on social media sites.

[32] In August 2010, a 17-year-old Hungarian woman (she turned 18 during the press coverage) using the online name "Miss Spring" was reported to have auctioned her virginity for £200,000 to a British man, to pay for family debts.

[33] Her original eBay listing was removed, and she reportedly declined the British winner's offer to marry her, and the auction was continued via a Hungarian television station (Tabu TV).

However, the Austrian Times reported on 2 September that after being beaten by four men at her home in northern Hungary who threatened to rape her, she pulled out of the auction.

[45][46][47] In November 2012, 18-year-old Rebecca Bernardo of Sapeaçu, Brazil, announced via a YouTube video that she would sell her virginity to the highest bidder to pay medical costs for her sick mother.

[52][53] In March 2014, an alleged 27-year-old American medical student using the name "Elizabeth Raine" announced she was auctioning her virginity, citing Dylan as an inspiration.