Your Skype account maybe vulnerable to hacks. Here are the steps to properly make it more secure.
Lately many Skype users are finding out that their accounts have been used to send numerous spam messages to their contacts and other users. However, this isn't a security breach problem on Microsoft's side. Instead, hackers have managed to steal old Skype credentials from users, which doesn't feature all the security technologies found on a Microsoft account.
It's been some time since Microsoft has been offering the ability to link Skype with a Microsoft account to make sign-in easier and more secure. Unfortunately, after merging both accounts, Microsoft will keep your original Skype ID and password active, in case you want to access the service using your old credentials.
However, if you used a weak password or someone managed to steal your Skype information, anyone can use that information to gain access to your account.
Thankfully, there is a way to fully merged your Skype ID with a Microsoft account (even if they're already linked) to prevent hackers from gaining access to your account, and on the steps below we show you how.
How to fully merge a Skype with a Microsoft account
- Open your web browser and go to https://account.microsoft.com/.
- If you're currently signed in with your Microsoft account, then sign out.
- Click the Sign-in button.
- Enter your Skype ID and Skype password to begin the process.
- Click Next.
- If you have already linked the accounts in the past, you'll get asked to update your information by entering your Microsoft account password.
- Click Next.
- Click OK to complete the process.
After completing the steps, your Skype account will be fully merged with your Microsoft account. Also, during the process, a Skype alias has been created to allow you to keep using your old username to sign into the service. However, as a result of the merge, you'll now have to use your Microsoft account password to sign in.
Keep in mind that if your Microsoft account happens to be using the same old Skype password, it's also highly recommended to change it as hackers will still be able to access your account.
In case you're not thinking of using the Skype name anymore, you can go to your Microsoft account and disable your current alias (Recommended).
If you want to make your account extra secure, remember that you need to set up two-factor authentication on your Microsoft account manually.
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Reader comments
How to secure your Skype account against Baidu and LinkedIn spam
Excellent advise and walkthrough.
Done! ALLSET.
I'm guessing this is what happened to me: Saturday morning I saw that I had sent about 50 of my contacts a link. I changed my Skype password and then turned off the ability to sign in by Skype alias - don't remember where that was, but somewhere in the account settings. Sounds like this way would maintain logging in with Skype alias, although in my case I really don't care either way. Then changed my Microsoft account password, too, because they sent me an email saying they thought it might have been hacked. There was no evidence of anything other than Skype, and I did have two-factor on, but better safe than sorry.
Exactly the same thing happened to me about a week ago. Got a notification from Microsoft telling me they thought my account had been illegally accessed. Checked the activity log through account.microsoft.com ... sure enough, my Skype alias had been used to access my account from India. Got around the 2 factor authentication.
Here's the kicker: it must have been amateur hour, because I hit the IP address that had accessed my account via the browser, and ended up on an router admin page. Made an effort to change as many settings to random values as I could, then used the default admin/password for that model router to change the router password to gibberish ... then restarted the router. Hopefully that gave some script kiddy a headache ;-)
That's awesome. Hope you ruined their day.
I laughed and laughed. This made my day. You sure showed 'em.
Well, probably that router was just used by a hacker to do the deed. So you probably did the same as the hacker did - hacked a router to do mischief...;)
It seems I can only go up to step 4, after that I don't see any next link or button. But I did change my Microsoft account password though.
How to remove skype alias instead of disable? There is no remove option
I also want to remove the skype alias but couldn't, while other email address can be removed.
I went to the old skype profile webpage, and it still says I have a skype account linked to the microsoft account, though I already merged them.
One of my friends has this happen to them since they never ever use their old Skype account.
Have gotten sis am from several people. Secured my account now.
This totally ticks me off to no end. I've never had a Skype account, didn't migrate over to Skype after it killed WLM, and don't want a Skype account for this very reason. But after the migration to the "new" Outlook Mail, every time I log into Outlook Mail, it automatically signs me into a Skype account with my MSA. Why am I being forced to have a Skype account I don't want in the first place, just by logging into my Outlook Mail???
Please for the love of all that is holy... Microsoft PLEASE give users the option to "opt in" to which apps and services they wish to utilize on their own devices with their MSA rather than making them defaults. Is it really that hard to allow people choice these days???
If anyone knows of a way to disable Skype from its default association with Outlook Mail, please tell me. Honestly, I would be eternally grateful!!!
Mauro, please tell me there is a way to disable Skype in Outlook Mail!
For the same reason. I have stopped using skype. it is just spamming all of my contacts. I have 2 tier authentication of microsoft account
That's where biometric security becomes important.
This is good advice, but my problem is that for a time, I was receiving endless Baidu spam. There's no way to filter out spam in Skype. None of my contacts are likely to ever use baidu.com, so I would be happy to add that to a blacklist.
I don't know my skype password so I wouldn't be able to follow this