Firewall/NAT

Hello all,

I'm using Skype to keep in touch with a widely-distributed team of developers and the more I learn about Skype the more nervous I get about the 'carte-blanche' access it seems to crave.

Part of how Skype works, as best I can tell, is through a lot of "relaying" of traffic through known users (hosts) with good bandwidth - sort of like bit torrent for VOIP where each user is expected to help bolster the network, in effect.

Skype claims that all possible measures have been taken to assure that the "relaying" activity is benign, but it seems to me like betting on that is a bit like marrying a stunningly attractive woman 20 years younger than you and thinking that other guys aren't checking her out.

If any of you are "up-to-speed" on this, please help me get caught up.

Just curious as to how many  of you had tried it and/or are using it and what you've done to manage the inherent security risks.

have a read here http://www.heise-security.co.uk/articles/82481 and then you understand why i have my skype phone in a seperate lan with no connections allowed other then to the internet.

Sounds like you've adopted the "take no chances" approach, and I can see why. I think I'll do likewise. It's only a matter of time before Skype ushers some sort of malware into my little electronic hamlet.