It is prohibited as disruptive and manipulative trading. The pattern is a deliberate burst of aggression, often combined with layering on the other side, timed for thin liquidity so the cost of moving price is small.
Distinguishing it from legitimate aggressive execution is a question of intent and pattern. A trader who genuinely needs the position and works it aggressively is not igniting; one who buys 30,000 to create a print and sells 120,000 into the reaction is.
Example: at 11:40 in a quiet market, a participant lifts every offer from 45.00 to 45.30 with 25,000 shares, costing roughly $3,000 in impact. Momentum algorithms chase to 45.90, and the instigator sells 100,000 there. The $3,000 of deliberate impact buys a $60,000 exit — and a fraud charge.
Related: layering, spoofing, market-manipulation, marking-the-close