Extremely Pissed at Skype

I’m really down on Skype right now. I’m trying to set up an account for the Uplifters with a SkypeIn number. It is a downright nightmare to try to pay these sons of bitches. They have this anti-fraud policy that doesn’t let you pay with the same credit card across different Skype accounts. I wanted to pay with PayPal, but apparently the same deal applies (even though there is nothing in their docs specific to PayPal that I could find.) Even using different email addresses, it doesn’t go through when they are associated with the same PayPal account. To make it more fun, it fails in the worst possible way – the money leaves out of PayPal and I get an email from Skype saying my transaction was cancelled.

I’m just plain pissed, and where yesterday I was all excited about using Skype to solve this specific problem and giving them money to make it happen, now I’m figuring out alternatives that involve giving that money to anyone else. Damn it Skype, if you are going to fail somewhere, failing at taking the money is the dumbest place to do it.

On top of that, I’ve now realized that if they are preventing me paying with the same credit card, that implies that they are keeping my credit card information around. Is that making me safer? I can maybe see disallowing a number of transactions in a short period, but to make me never use the same card again ever is downright absurd. I’m mad, and on the path to becoming an un-customer of Skype.

Update: On further reflection, I don’t even know why Skype thinks this is protection. Who are they to decide that the same credit card can’t be used across accounts? If my wife and I each have a Skype account and want SkypeIn numbers, we have to pay via different methods? Why? We use the same card in different Amazon accounts, the same card at different stores.

This is such a simple and common use case that I can’t believe they do business this way. I’ve worked up a head of steam over this, and I’m just getting madder all the time.

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dave

Dave Slusher is a blogger, podcaster, computer programmer, author, science fiction fan and father. Member of the Podcast Hall of Fame class of 2022.

11 thoughts on “Extremely Pissed at Skype”

  1. This is actually a policy that paypal has had for many years. When I first setup a paypal account my wife had set one up previously and it wouldn’t let me use the same card. I’m guessing that ebay just expanded this same policy to skype after buying them.

  2. You might want to check out GizmoProject… it’s pretty nice/nifty, allows recording, has the callout stuff, etc.

    I’ve found that I like it better than Skype.

    PayPal’s whole “you used this card/account” with “x” e-mail address ROYALLY pisses me off, so I generally avoid using PayPal on the whole (unless there just isn’t another method).

  3. Guys, this is Skype’s issue, not Paypal. I have a buildup of cash in my Paypal account, there is no credit card involved. I’ve paid Skype on one account from this Paypal account, now they won’t let me buy things on a different Skype account with this Paypal account. It’s entirely Skype’s issue. Paypal pays out, Skype then cancels the transaction.

    I’ll look at Gizmo and see if it does what I want. I’ll also look at that group thing, but at this point, with 3 transactions dangling in the air and Skype acting like a bunch of oafs, I’m loathe to continue with them. Note to self: don’t acquire companies for $5B when they are antagonistic to accepting money from customers.

  4. Could this be a product of unfortunate database design, or sub-par software? It’s almost as though Skype regards the CC number as a primary database key, which makes zero sense.

    As far as “fraud prevention” is concerned, Skype would get paid even if the CC number were being used inappropriately. The bank behind the card is the one with the real interest in fraud prevention.

    It is also something of a head-scratcher that Skype stores the card info someplace; by using another card, you would have doubled your exposure to shenanigans.

    Whatever their reasoning, I say tell ’em “Nuts”.

    -k-

  5. had very similar problems. did not find any sollution. heared that gizmo is very bad on security (google gizmo security review). other sollutions seem jajah or openwengo.

  6. Because it costs Skype nothing to provide service to someone who might be committing fraud, Skype should logically go ahead and provide service to the billions of intelligent people who use anonymous proxies (most services in Europe are like this) and just have some credit company or the authorities track down the deadbeats later on if it turns out that they used someone’s credit card fraudulently.

    There is a total moron in Skype management right now. There is no security problem if providing the service has no marginal cost to the provider.

  7. There is a way around this issue…
    Skype is sync with your paypal primary email address to do transfers.

    The only thing you need to do is change your primary email address in Paypay and try again to add funds in your new Skype account.

    Good luck!

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