Update to this: A week after this post, my surge protector, not a Belkin, fried before my eyes — for no apparent reason. I heard the inside sizzle and then smoke drifted out like a pope had been chosen. I pulled it from the adapter and the wall outlet. The little colored cover that lights when the surge protector is on was missing.

Do these surge protectors read what is written on blogs about them? How do they know?

It wasn’t easy grabbing that flashlight and magnifying glass and crawling under the desk to read the ultra-tiny serial numbers on the back of my Belkin surge protector to see if I was a candidate for electrocution, but that’s what I did after seeing a little item buried in the back pages of the February issue of PC World magazine.

If you’re reading this Watchdog Bytes on a computer (and the only other way is on mobile device), you probably have a surge protector under your desk. They are supposed to protect your electronics from power surges and lightning strikes. (I have them all over my house and even have a “master” surge protector on the main power line into the house — a relatively new product.)

But Belkin, working with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, is recalling 68,000 SurgeMaster surge protectors because they have plastic moldings that could crack and lead to electrical shocks. (No cases reported yet, though.)

Models affected are: F9G930-10, F9G930-v10, F9G930-10-W, F9G930G-CL and F9G930-10-SN.

Turns out my Belkin isn’t listed. But if yours is, call Belkin at 1-800-952-1465 or order a free replacement. Customers who own one of these products can telephone Belkin at 1-800-952-1465 or order a free replacement. Visit www.belkin.com/recall.

– Dave Lieber/Fort Worth Star-Telegram Watchdog columnist