We know extra protection is important as you share sensitive information over Skype so we’re excited to announce the preview of end-to-end encrypted Private Conversations, available now for Skype Insiders.

With Private Conversations, you can have end-to-end encrypted Skype audio calls and send text messages or files like images, audio, or videos, using the industry standard Signal Protocol by Open Whisper Systems. The content of these conversations will be hidden in the chat list as well as in notifications to keep the information you share private.

Give it a try by selecting “New Private Conversation” from the compose menu or from the recipient’s profile. After the recipient accepts your invite, all calls and messages in that conversation will be encrypted end-to-end until you choose to end it. You can only participate in a private conversation from a single device at a time. You can switch the conversation to any of your devices, but the messages you send and receive will be tied to the device you’re using at the time.

During the preview, you will only be able to start private conversations with other Skype Insiders also running the latest version, and these interactions are limited to one-to-one conversations. Up next, we’d like to improve the UX around the invite to join a private conversation and bring the experience to the UWP client.



We’re looking to you, Skype Insiders, to tell us if this new feature works as expected before enabling it for everyone. Please submit feedback and let us know what you think!

Private Conversations are available now to Skype Insiders using Skype version 8.13.76.8 for iOS, Android, Linux, Mac, and Windows Desktop.

Thanks for all you do!

Chat with others using this new feature:

http://aka.ms/skypeinsidercommunity

Read the Private Conversations FAQ:

https://go.skype.com/privateconversations

Join the Skype Insider Program:

https://www.skype.com/en/insider/