Is it safe to be online during a storm?

Question

I was wondering if it is safe to be online during a thunderstorm, my phoneline is underground like my electricity.

Answer 1

You take your chances. Even though your phone line is underground, there is a point where it is above ground. If lightning strikes that particular line, or even an electrical line, it can travel that line into your house and into your computer. You have about as much of a chance of having lightning strike your phone or electrical lines as you do of being struck by lightning yourself.
Best solution is to turn it off. Better to disconnect everything from the wall. But who would bother doing that

Answer 2

No, not really. If theres a strike further up the line in your power or phone supply it can wipe out your motherboard. Make sure you get a proper surge protector with modem slot, a 4 or 6 gang (4 or 6 plug) + modem socket will only cost about £15 and you're covered. All your pc equipment and the modem should be plugged into one of these, they look like an extension cable.
If you have a dip in the power supply or lots of static it can wipe your bios or cmos settings.

Answer 3

only if it is a sever electrical storm as lightnin travels through power lines....i never turn off y internet in storms n im still here, only once has it ever been hit with lightning,,,well it was a re-bound, the lightning struck the police station n bounced n hit my net. but really in a storm ya should really turn off all electrical things, but i never do, i think it is safe to use net in a storm unless it is a severe electrical storm, as the lightning conduct electricity.:)but dont turn it off while the storm is actually above ya, cuz then u will risc being electricuted, turn it off b4 the storm, thunder can b heard up to 12 miles away or like that, so ya can know how far away the storm is, by countin the seconds from the flash of lightnin to the rumble of thunder:):)

Answer 4

depends on the amount of lightning. If there is a lot I would turn off and unplug the computer that way if lightning stricks the house your computer will still be ok. Same with other important expensive electronics. The chance of you being shocked is minimal, but the chance that your things could be destroyed gets higher and higher the more electricity in the air.

Answer 5

No, according to the electric company. No one should use the phone nor the internet during an electrical storm.

Answer 6

No, it is not. that's terrific to unplug your equipment in the process an electric hurricane. Surge protectors are reliable secure practices against distant lightning strikes, yet no longer inevitably something close. you do no longer desire to convey the lightning ability interior the homestead in any respect--it basically jumped a mile or 2 around the sky, it ought to discover its way around a surge protector.

Answer 7

If it is a particularly nasty electrical storm, then it is best to unplug and device that connects to the telephone system. Also, unplug any satellite or television equipment.

Answer 8

you're pretty safe, but make sure you have a surge protector from a known company (dell, microsoft, sony). since you are using a dial up connection, you have a higher risk of a surge going through your computer.

Answer 9

Its probably not a good idea to have a computer on at all during a thuderstorm. If there's a power surge (lightning) it could fry your hard drive.

Answer 10

It should be safe as long as your power stays on. If you're getting strange power effects or if you think your power might go off, you should protect your computer. Turn it off and unplug it to avoid power surges.