# Modem stopped making noise **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 29, 2003, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/modem-stopped-making-noise/215982 "2003-11-29T23:34:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Hydrocortisone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e19b73/32.png) [@Hydrocortisone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hydrocortisone)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2003, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/modem-stopped-making-noise/215982/1 "2003-11-29T23:34:24Z")
My modem has stopped making noise when I ocnnect to the internet. Why is this? I haven’t changed any settings and when I look athe modem propertiesthe volume is still listed as on. ---
**Author:** ![danceswithcats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9e8a1a/32.png) [@danceswithcats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/danceswithcats)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2003, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/modem-stopped-making-noise/215982/2 "2003-11-30T00:06:52Z")
My guesses are: a) audio output of modem has checked out b) audio input device has checked out c) it doesn’t like your spelling and has taken a vow of silence ---
**Author:** ![jackelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@jackelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackelope)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2003, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/modem-stopped-making-noise/215982/3 "2003-11-30T00:54:44Z")
On my home computer (a Fujitsu Lifebook laptop), the modem noise apparently comes through the speakers; if I mute the speakers, no modem noise. Are your speakers functioning properly? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2003, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/modem-stopped-making-noise/215982/4 "2003-11-30T01:45:23Z")
Just as a precaution, do a spyware check with Ad-Aware or Spybot. There are some dialers that turn off the modem sound and then dial a 900 number, having you end up with a big phone bill. I can’t say this is the case, but it wouldn’t hurt to check. ---
**Author:** ![Hydrocortisone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e19b73/32.png) [@Hydrocortisone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hydrocortisone)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2003, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/modem-stopped-making-noise/215982/5 "2003-11-30T06:24:14Z")
> [@](#): > > There are some dialers that turn off the modem sound and then dial a 900 number, having you end up with a big phone bill. I can’t say this is the case, but it wouldn’t hurt to check. Would I be responsible for this phone bill? ---
**Author:** ![Caught\_Work](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/919ad9/32.png) [@Caught\_Work](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caught_Work)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2003, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/modem-stopped-making-noise/215982/6 "2003-11-30T07:17:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Hydrocortisone \* > \*\*Would I be responsible for this phone bill? \*\* Don’t know about where you are, but in Australia, yep ! You made the call (albeit unknowlingly), you pay the price. ---
**Author:** ![Hydrocortisone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e19b73/32.png) [@Hydrocortisone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hydrocortisone)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2003, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/modem-stopped-making-noise/215982/7 "2003-11-30T07:55:51Z")
> [@](#): > > You made the call (albeit unknowlingly), you pay the price. No, I didn’t. A program that I didn’t authorize being on my computer did. (If such a program was ever on my computer) ---
**Author:** ![KP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a9adbd/32.png) [@KP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KP)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2003, 11:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/modem-stopped-making-noise/215982/8 "2003-11-30T11:31:46Z")
You can try to contest it (in the US, you’d almost certainly be successful unless you were a notorious repeat offender to, say, a sex or chat line) but unless you do - yup, you’d be on the hook for the charge. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2003, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/modem-stopped-making-noise/215982/9 "2003-11-30T12:01:55Z")
It’s your **responsibility** to pay the bill. By all means, if you manage to find the person who did it and take them to small claims court, you could probably get them to pay it but the chances of that are fairly remote and probably cost more than the bill in the first place.