Using Ethernet Cable in Electronics Projects
... but what would happen if someone accidentally plugged my base station into a laptop for example?


Probably nothing. Damage at 5 V is extremely unlikely.

You need to watch for inadvertent cross-over. 







simulate this circuit &ndash; Schematic created using CircuitLab

Figure 1. A suggested layout.

At 5 V it's going to be hard to do any damage. 







simulate this circuit

Figure 2. Reversal.

If the cable is inadvertently crossed over all that will happen is:


D1 and D2 won't light until SW1 is pressed.
IN1 will still work as intended.