To find that I had fallen foul of this sort of scam is pretty galling, I’ll be honest.
I’ve authored a fair few articles and essays both online and offline over the years concerning user account security and the growing number of risks and threats. To describe me as angry would be something of an understatement (especially as I had recently had this guide to three Skype security issues published) – but rather than wishing any harm on the sorry excuse for a human being whose non-existent morals are contributing to an unprecedented level of theft and fraud, I was angry with myself for not recognizing the signs. Immediately I realised what had been going on, the pieces of the jigsaw falling into place. It wasn't until my 37th birthday that I received an email from Skype, informing me that my account was under review. Unfortunately, I wasn't the only one slow off the mark, resulting in a painful and needlessly drawn-out process of confirming my identification several times.
In fact he’d used so little of the first bunch of Skype call credit that it wasn't until the second grab for extra credit that I noticed anything was wrong. The hacker was clever, too, using my account just a little to call his relatives/associates in Pakistan.