https://www.wired.com/story/covid-19-amazon-curb-face-mask-price-gouging/

They’ve become the iconic symbol of a spreading epidemic. As the world struggles to contain the Covid-19 coronavirus disease, social media and news sites have flooded with pictures of people donning protective masks while they go about their daily lives, making city streets and shopping malls look more like hospitals. Mask shortages are now affecting some countries, and suppliers are working overtime to keep up with demand. On Amazon, prices for the devices have sharply increased in recent weeks, and the company has warned sellers not to raise them to exorbitant levels—or risk getting kicked off the site.

Amazon has alerted merchants about face masks that are “not in compliance” with its pricing policies, according to an email provided to WIRED. One consultant who works with Amazon sellers said that listings for overpriced face masks had been deleted from the site. The topic of “coronavirus and price gouging” has also been hotly debated among users on Amazon’s official selling forum over the last week. Amazon did not respond to two requests for comment.