What is pipe.skype.com? OpenDNS is logging access to this

[mike_dino]

Hi all

My DNS logs have logged activity to Skype but as far as I know, no one in my house uses Skype. Well, its only my wife and I in the house (and there is where the concern lies). OpenDNS has been logging access to www.skype.com, pipe.skype.com, and skypewebexperience.live.com.

A few weeks ago I bought a DLink router with Gargoyle and it has been logging all web access but as I understand it now, skype is peer-to-peer which Gargoyle does not log. But I would think the router would log the access to the Skype website. So while OpenDNS is logging Skype access one every few days, it is not picked up by the router. I thought it may have been guests to the house but I have confirmed some days where Skype was accessed where there was no one else at home. My router is also secure so I doubt anyone is leeching off my internet.

My question is around pipe.skype.com. Is this the peer-to-peer connection for audio/video?
I posted this to the Skype forum but never did get a response. I figured folks here may know something.

I have never used Skype so I have no idea how it works behind the scenes.

Thanks

[rotblitz]

"I posted this to the Skype forum but never did get a response."

Is it this?  http://community.skype.com/t5/Windows-desktop-client/What-is-pipe-skype-com/td-p/3686351

"My question is around pipe.skype.com. Is this the peer-to-peer connection for audio/video?
I have never used Skype so I have no idea how it works behind the scenes."

I'm in the same situation, but no matter, all DNS lookups you see in your stats do come out of your network, and most not due to having been actively visited, but automatically generated by networking applications, be it on the router, any computer, mobile devices ("apps"), DVRs, NASs, IPTV boxes, or any other devices.  These lookups can also be generated because of some sites may load content from these domains, for e.g. advertisement purposes or whatever, or because you have DNS prefetching enabled in browsers by default which causes browsers to generate a lookup for every URL found in any web page.

You may want to install a sniffer on specific devices to see if these raise DNS lookups for Skype related domains.  You may also add those domains to your "always block" list to see if some application "complaints".

"My router is also secure so I doubt anyone is leeching off my internet."

Also, is your WLAN protected so that nobody else can use it unauthorized?