Stock exchanges around the world are complex and seemingly sentient trading centers. Many transactions are processed on such exchanges, and millions of dollars can change hands in an instant. Due to the immense number of transactions, fraudulent practices and backroom deals can thrive if they operate without controls. One of these practices is known as insider trading. Insider trading is the practice of buying or selling shares with the knowledge of the company's performance, which is not available to all shareholders. Most people in the stock market community consider insider trading to be amoral, corrupt, and unethical due to fears that trading could damage or weaken the stock market itself. The size of stock markets makes most traders fear a collapse and exempts the market from the economic laws that govern the rest of the business world. If a person were to buy a car or a house, they would not shop around to find the best deal and they would not try to gather all the information about the product they are purchasing if possible. The same could be said for finding a low interest rate on a loan and the same should be true for stock markets. Some types of insider trading are legal. Let's consider two different scenarios presented in When is it legal to trade inside information (Shell). The first scenario begins with an average person riding the elevator to work one morning. This person hears from some executives of a company, which is run on a different level, that their company is being bought by a larger and more powerful company. Executives are debating how much their stock options will be worth once the buyout process is complete. The person then decides, once he returns home, to invest a large sum of money in the manager's company and to proceed...... by means of paper......"Application of ethics to insider trading ". Journal of Business Ethics 2008: 205-217.Procon.org. 1 Minute Overview Should Insider Trading Be Allowed? August 11, 2009. January 2010. Shell, Richard G. “When It's Legal to Trade Inside Information.” MIT Sloan Management Review Fall 2001: 89-90. Sternberg, Elaine. "Insider Trading." Just Business: Business Ethics in Action (2000). Tighe, Carla and Ron Michener. “The Political Economy of Insider Trading Laws.” The American Economic Review May 1994: 164-168. Treynor, Jack L and Dean LeBaron. “Insider Trading: Two Comments.” Financial Analysts Journal May/June 2004: 10-12. United States v. Bryan. No. 58 F.3d 933. Fourth Circuit. 1995. Werhane, Patricia H. “The Indefensibility of Insider Trading.” Journal of Business Ethics September 1991: 729-731.