Skype bug hits private messages

Skype users faced a strange error lately. Their private messages were being re-sent to other contacts. Skype admitted that a bug in software was causing the problem and it is struggling to fix it. The bug probably came through an update which Skype applied in June. Skype said it hoped to put out a software update in the "next few days" to fix the problem. It said it would also prompt users to download and apply the update to prevent the problem spreading.

Skype lets people call each other via the net rather than traditional landlines or mobile networks. In September 2011, it said it had more than 600 million users. Earlier the same year it was acquired by Microsoft.

In May 2011 Skype suffered a global crash that knocked the service offline for a couple of days. The crash was caused by a botched update.