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how to avoid internet outage losses?

  • #1
  • First Post: Sep 22, 2008 2:55pm Sep 22, 2008 2:55pm
I had a scare while trading when my internet went out for a bit during an open trade.

I was curious what things I can do to avoid losing money this way.

Are there things that I can do with the internet provider companies or some things with my computer setup to minimize this problem?
  • #2
  • Sep 22, 2008 2:59pm Sep 22, 2008 2:59pm
Quoting acdrew0
I had a scare while trading when my internet went out for a bit during an open trade.

I was curious what things I can do to avoid losing money this way.

Are there things that I can do with the internet provider companies or some things with my computer setup to minimize this problem?
There are some good threads on other trading forums about this. The best insurance is to have both cable and DSL, and use a special type of router that automatically switches when one line goes out (there is a name for this, but it's escaping me at present).

I have a tethering data plan with my cell provider, so I always have quick backup via cell USB should my cable go out.
  • #3
  • Sep 22, 2008 3:13pm Sep 22, 2008 3:13pm
that is all good. what happens if your broker's connection went down for like an hour?
  • #4
  • Sep 22, 2008 3:14pm Sep 22, 2008 3:14pm
Quoting acdrew0
I had a scare while trading when my internet went out for a bit during an open trade.

I was curious what things I can do to avoid losing money this way.

Are there things that I can do with the internet provider companies or some things with my computer setup to minimize this problem?
It depends on how much money you could lose really.

If you are dealing with significant amounts of money you may want to use a service provider who caters for businesses and the improved service level agreement this will provide (high availability dual connections etc)

Other wise a 3g/phone type modem is a good hot standby backup but you will not get an instant fail over so no good for scalping.

For most people the phone/modem backup will probably suffice though.
  • #5
  • Sep 22, 2008 3:25pm Sep 22, 2008 3:25pm
Quoting acdrew0
I had a scare while trading when my internet went out for a bit during an open trade.

I was curious what things I can do to avoid losing money this way.

Are there things that I can do with the internet provider companies or some things with my computer setup to minimize this problem?
Always keep your broker's trade desk phone number handy. You can trade by phone or tell the broker to close all open trades at market for an account.

For those too poor or cheap to follow Trader KGB's good suggestion. If you are using cable you can always sign-up for a 100 dollar a year dialup account or a slow DSL account which does not cost much more. Personally I just have about three different people's dialup account information that said I could use their account if I needed to. I have it entered in my computer but have only needed it about once a year.

If you are using MetaTrader experts to manage your trades, or want a longer alert that the internet is down, you may want to replace MT4's disconnect.wav file with a 30 minute music file that you have renamed to disconnect.wav . If you record the sound file louder than normal and if it continues to play you will be alerted to manually change connections or phone your broker.
  • #6
  • Sep 22, 2008 3:42pm Sep 22, 2008 3:42pm
Quoting Geelong_Cats
that is all good. what happens if your broker's connection went down for like an hour?
Multiple brokerage accounts, absolute necessity.
  • #7
  • Sep 22, 2008 5:12pm Sep 22, 2008 5:12pm
Quoting Trader KGB
Multiple brokerage accounts, absolute necessity.
KGB, if you have 100k how will you allocate them across books? at which brokerage do you open account and how much do you feel comfortable to put in each account?
  • #8
  • Sep 22, 2008 6:24pm Sep 22, 2008 6:24pm
Quoting Geelong_Cats
KGB, if you have 100k how will you allocate them across books? at which brokerage do you open account and how much do you feel comfortable to put in each account?
IB has SIPC/Lloyds coverage for up to $1M for cash/FX, $30M for securities. I'd leave the bulk of it there. I'd leave in the secondary/backup account only that which is required to offset a position in the primary account should the primary be inaccessible. You'd want to look for similar account protections, etc. I'd recommend any other ECN really - HotSpot, MBT, any number of Currenex prime brokers - they all have their pros and cons.
  • #9
  • Sep 22, 2008 6:45pm Sep 22, 2008 6:45pm
Another backup method worth considering is a mobile broadband card.

These work very well & can be used practically anywhere and are not dependent on any cable/electricity/ or hard lines what so ever.(laptop)

You can get a lot of air time for $15 a month. My daughter works from home using one & never has connection problems.
  • #10
  • Sep 22, 2008 8:13pm Sep 22, 2008 8:13pm
Quoting acdrew0
I had a scare while trading when my internet went out for a bit during an open trade.

I was curious what things I can do to avoid losing money this way.

Are there things that I can do with the internet provider companies or some things with my computer setup to minimize this problem?
always put ur SL>... be it wide SL or whatsoever...

Sonic
  • #11
  • Sep 23, 2008 3:37am Sep 23, 2008 3:37am
Use a stop-loss.
Trade what you see, not what you think.
  • #12
  • Sep 23, 2008 4:25am Sep 23, 2008 4:25am
stop loss get hunted. 30 pips hunt does happen more than you think
  • #13
  • Last Post: Sep 23, 2008 5:52am Sep 23, 2008 5:52am
Quoting Geelong_Cats
stop loss get hunted. 30 pips hunt does happen more than you think
That's not stop hunting, that's just the market moving. Another lame excuse why not to use a stop loss - because they get hit. That's what they're there for, you may lose the battle but you will not lose the war (quickly) if you use them intelligently. I never worry when I am in a trade because if my stop does get hit I'm only going to lose such a tiny fraction of my account that it does not bother me. If my internet goes out, I go and take a nap and take a look later when it comes back online. Whilst people have listed several practical contingency methods of getting around an internet 'blackout', sounds more like a money management issue to me.
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