Correction available]Skype bug automatically answers calls on Android, Microsoft is already working on a fix

Once, Skype was the video chat application par excellence, but these days are over. With the rise of WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Viber, Duo and others, many users see no reason to have another app on their phone with the same features. However, some people still depend on Skype, whether for business or usual reasons. This number may further decrease in Android: we receive information that the Microsoft application automatically responds to calls from certain users, possibly allowing callers to intercept them in unfortunate circumstances.

Worse, Skype is often used today as a professional tool. Many remote employees use it to register with their office. You do not want your boss or your customers to see you in underwear – it's up to you to decide which of those you believe to be the worst.

Normally, you can enable or disable a setting called "Answer Incoming Calls Automatically". But for the users concerned, the activation or deactivation of this rocker does not change the behavior of their phones. Calls are always taken automatically after ringing two or three times.

To be clear: Of is the standard position of this flip-flop.

One of the first malicious automatic response reports appeared on Microsoft's support forums in January 2019, with the individual stating that this had been happening for the past few weeks. Even the suggestions of other members of the forum, such as emptying the cache, deleting data and reinstalling the application, did not work. Instead, a rather unexpected culprit has been found for many people facing the problem: portable equipment. Once users have disconnected their smart watches, both Google Wear and Samsung Gear, Skype no longer automatically responds to calls. There could also be other problems, because not everyone has declared using mobile devices.

While I'm wondering why anyone would even want to use a feature that automatically answers incoming calls, Microsoft gives good reasons: it's a way to control your pets while you're traveling or on vacation, or an alternative to a dedicated service. baby monitor (although I think there are better solutions than Skype calls for both).

I'm sure most users would not want this feature on their main phone, though – its potential for massive invasion of privacy is too important, and as it implies that other people are watching you while you're talking about it, it's worse than Google's Audio Spying Incident in 2017. If Skype was still a more widely used product, it could have touched even more people – and every single person affected is one too many.

Fortunately, Microsoft is already working on a fix. Forum members report that the latest Skype preview application solves the problem. If you encounter the problem, you can download the beta from the Play Store or APK Mirror.

And no, it's not a bad April joke. It's serious.