How Technology Can Help You Catch a Cheating Spouse

Confronting a spouse when you suspect they’re cheating can be a daunting prospect. You might not have any evidence and are unsure whether a gut feeling is enough to confront them. A gut feeling can be an excellent starting point, but you might be able to use the following forms of technology to back up your suspicions and prove their infidelity once and for all.

Picture: Romina Ahmadpour

A People Search Tool

You might be amazed at what you can find with a phone number. It can be much more than a simple set of numbers you use to contact your spouse. Instead, it can be a valuable piece of data that provides insight into a possible second life you weren’t aware of.

When you load a phone number into a people search tool, you can find a long list of personal information, including their first and last name, possible aliases, other people associated with the number, and even photographs of the number owner.

However, this information is typically not enough to confirm that a spouse is cheating. Fortunately, the best people search tools also use phone numbers to find connected email addresses, location history, and social media profiles. If you’ve found a suspicious number on your spouse’s phone, you can also enter it into a people search tool to learn more about them and whether they’re someone you need to be concerned about.

Browser History

While browser history won’t always help you catch a cheating spouse if they aren’t using the internet to conduct their affairs, it’s worth checking it out if you suspect they’re being dishonest. If your spouse hasn’t deleted their browser history, you can see whether they’ve been going on dating sites, visiting gift websites to make purchases that weren’t for you, and booking hotel reservations.

If the browser history has been wiped clean, this can be a sign of infidelity in itself. However, you might also be able to find the information you’re looking for through cookies saved on your computer and temporary internet files.

Auto Log-Ins

Business owners love making internet browsing much easier by allowing us to save our login information. Rather than having to remember our usernames and passwords, we can save them and be logged in each time we visit specific sites. While convenient, auto log-ins can be a cheater’s downfall. Even if your spouse wipes their browser history, you might be able to prove they’ve visited a website by visiting it yourself and seeing if it automatically logs you in.

Snapchat Emojis

Many unfaithful spouses love using Snapchat to communicate with people they don’t want their loved ones to know about. Messages disappear after sending them, ensuring there’s no paper trail of interactions.

However, that doesn’t mean you can’t gain insight into whether your spouse is communicating with someone they’re potentially cheating on you with. Emojis can appear beside the names of people you frequently chat with, and each emoji has a meaning.

For example, a yellow heart means you’re each other’s best friend, sending the most snaps to each other out of both of your friends’ lists. A red heart means you’ve been messaging each other for two weeks straight, while a pink heart means you’ve been each other’s best friend for two months or more. If you happen to catch a glimpse of your spouse’s Snapchat friend list, pay attention to the emojis that appear and what that could mean for your suspicions regarding their infidelity.

A Locked Device

A locked mobile device, such as a computer, tablet, or mobile phone, doesn’t mean your spouse is cheating. However, it can be worth paying attention to if a locked device is a new development. They might have previously left their devices open, allowing you or anyone else to see what was on them, and now they’re taking much greater care. Alternatively, they might have always had a locked device, which you knew the password to, and now that lock code or pattern has changed.

Location History and Tracking

Location history on a mobile device or GPS might help you catch your spouse out in a lie, helping you prove that they’ve been unfaithful. For example, you might notice that their device has them visiting an unknown location on multiple occasions. Alternatively, you might catch them in a lie when they say they were working late when they were really at an address you don’t recognize.

You might also be able to use their phone’s tracking function to find out where they are in real time. This can be particularly helpful if they’re not picking up their phone or have told you they’re at a particular location when you suspect they’re elsewhere.

Notifications

Notifications are helpful for all of us. We can see a text message, an email, or an app notification without having to open those specific programs or apps. They can also be helpful for people trying to catch a cheating spouse when notifications pop up for apps and people they don’t want you to see.

You might notice a name pop up in a social media or text message you don’t recognize or an icon for a dating app. For example, the dating app ‘Tinder’ shows a flame, and Bumble shows a beehive. You might also become suspicious if your spouse has changed their settings to keep notifications hidden.

Bank Statements

Before the digital age, you typically had to wait at least one month and up to three months to receive your bank statement in the mail. Now, we have online banking, ensuring we can see where we’re spending and earning money in seconds. If you have a joint account with your spouse, pay attention to all outgoings concerning your spouse. Look for any unusual transactions that might stand out to you.

For example, they might have said they were staying at a friend’s house, only to discover they had made a hotel reservation that evening. They might have also said they were working late one evening, but you see a transaction for a fuel station far from your home and their workplace.  While some transactions can look innocent, and sometimes are, you might discover a few that confirm your suspicions, especially when paired with other forms of evidence.

Technology has made everyday life much easier and has also been particularly helpful for people who suspect their spouses have been unfaithful. If your gut is telling you that your spouse has been lying or cheating, you might be able to find the evidence you need using some of these technology forms above.