Are you hiding something? 82% admit to snooping through someone else's devices

A shocking 53% claim they've found something incriminating while going through someone else's device.

LOS ANGELES — Do you have something to hide? It might not even matter to those closest to you, since a new survey finds more than four in five people admit to snooping through other people's digital devices! Moreover, the most likely Americans to go snooping is a person's romantic partner or their ex.

According to a poll of more than 1,000, commissioned by Secure Data Recovery Services, those who go snooping around may have a reason to always be so suspicious. A shocking 53 percent claim they've found something incriminating or concerning while going through someone else's device. The most common thing people find is evidence that their significant other is cheating or flirting with other people. In fact, 70 percent say they've discovered evidence of digital flirting or in-person cheating after going through someone's device.

Nearly nine in 10 snoopers (87%) go straight to their target's messages, e-mails, or social media direct messages. Nearly half (44%) check out a person's photos while snooping and 38 percent read through their target's browser history. Other targets of digital snooping include children (9%), friends (8%), parents (7%), siblings (7%), and co-workers (3%). Interestingly, more than one in three have no regrets about snooping on another person.

Catch me if you can

Even though 82 percent of Americans admit to snooping through another person's device, most are apparently expert digital spies. Eighty-one percent claim they've never been caught while snooping through someone's device.

Women are more likely to say they snoop (88%) in comparison to men (77%). Moreover, women were also less likely to regret snooping through someone's device. Only one in 10 respondents say they've never looked through someone else's device.

For everyone else, one in four say they find “something significant most or every time” they go snooping around. However, three in 10 may just have a suspicious mind, since they “never” find anything incriminating when they go snooping.

Unsurprisingly, millennials (85%) — who grew up during the rise of technology — are more likely to go snooping than Gen Z (77%). However, it's baby boomers who are the least likely Americans to regret the decision to go snooping through someone's device.

Survey methodology:

Secure Data Recovery surveyed 1,003 people across the United States on the Prolific online research platform, asking about their digital snooping habits and opinions. Of our respondents, 48% identified as female, 50% as male, and 2% nonbinary. Respondents’ ages ranged from 18 to 76 years old; 19% Gen Z, 51% millennials, 19% Gen X, and 11% baby boomers.