Skype is awesome, but when you install Skype you sometimes also wind up installing the Skype browser plugin (sometimes also called “Add-ons”). One of the ways Skype makes money is by having you call land lines from your computer. In order to “facilitate” this for you, Skype installs a web browser add-on which function to turn practically every phone number you see in your web browser into a link. The idea is that you click the link, and voilà, you are automagically using Skype to make the call.
In order to remove the plugin it basically comes down to removing the plugin from your specific browser (e.g. Internet Explorer (IE) or Firefox). Remember, removing the plugin from IE or Firefox will NOT uninstall Skype from your computer — just the Skype browser plugin.
Note the directions below may differ slightly based on your browser version, but the idea is the same:
For Internet Explorer 8:
1. Head to Tools -> Manage Add-ons.
2. On the left side you should have “Toolbars and Extensions” highlighted. In the list on the right side you should see the Skype plugin listed.
3. Select the Skype plugin and hit the “Disable” button at the bottom right of the screen.
4. Close the window. Then close and restart IE and phone numbers should no longer be underlined or linked.
For Internet Explorer 6
1. Head to Tools-> Manage Add-ons
2. Select the plugin and click the “Disable” button at the bottom left.
3. Click “OK” and restart Internet Explorer.
For Firefox:
1. Head to Tools-> Add-ons
2. Click on the Skype add-on and either select “Disable” or “Uninstall”.
Disabling the add-on simply turns it off (you can always enable it later), while uninstalling it removes the add-on entirely.
So that covers how to remove the Skype link from phone numbers in your web browser.