I'm not sure if this is universal or just something brand-specific, but I thought I'd post the warning from my laptop's manual:

Oh my gosh! I handle my laptop power cord every day and never even thought to wash my hands after each time! I'm going to go through my user manual. What brand of laptop do you have?

Camille, it's a Toshiba Satellite (it's brand new and awesome!). I don't remember that warning from my previous laptop, but it's entirely possible I just glossed over it.