How to know if your boyfriend has something hidden in his phone?

Honesty and openness are important factors in couples’ relationships. If your boyfriend seems to be sneaking around with his phone these days, you’re probably wondering if he’s hiding something. Read through the following common signs of cheating to find out if your boyfriend has something hidden from you and if he has anything secret on his phone.

Table of Contents

He recently set a password for his phone

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/c/c4/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-1.jpg/ v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-1.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/ c/c4/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-1.jpg/v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on- His-Phone-Step-1.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output “></div>”}

If your boyfriend has never done this, this is a red flag. Maybe you were going to take his phone to do something innocuous, but suddenly you can’t open it. It’s even more suspicious if he doesn’t tell you the password or changes it right after telling you. ^{[1] X Research Source}

It’s normal to put a password on his phone (it’s actually safer), but if he keeps it, there’s probably something he doesn’t want you to know.

He puts his phone away when you walk into the room

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/4/42/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-2.jpg/ v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-2.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/ 4/42/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-2.jpg/v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on- His-Phone-Step-2.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output “></div>”}

He puts his phone away or exits certain apps when he sees you. If he was doing something “innocent,” he wouldn’t have to worry about being caught by you. If you see him always swiping back to the home screen or locking his phone when you enter the room, that’s a bad sign. ^{[2] X Research Source}

The same goes for computers – if your boyfriend rushes out of tabs on your screen as soon as you walk in, he’s probably hiding something from you.

He is busy texting at night

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/1/14/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-3.jpg/ v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-3.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/ 1/14/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-3.jpg/v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on- His-Phone-Step-3.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output “></div>”}

You think your boyfriend is asleep, but when you wake up at night, you find him texting. Or, he’s texting someone while you’re out, and when you ask, he’ll just reply with “nobody” or “friends.” However, friends often don’t text each other at any time like that, especially late at night. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Of course, maybe he’s just texting a friend who’s really having a hard time. If that’s the case, he usually won’t hesitate to tell you what they talked about.

He locks his phone when it’s near you

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/8/8b/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-4.jpg/ v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-4.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/ 8/8b/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-4.jpg/v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on- His-Phone-Step-4.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output “></div>”}

Your boyfriend may intentionally lock his phone before leaving the room. He probably doesn’t want you to check his phone. While it’s normal to lock your phone, you may have noticed that he carefully double-checks it. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

He can also turn the phone face down before leaving the room. Maybe your boyfriend does it so you don’t see the notifications that pop up when he’s not around.
Remember that it’s normal to have a habit of locking your phone, even if they have nothing to hide (you usually lock your phone before you put it down or leave the room, don’t you). The problem is that he keeps doing it, especially when he’s around you.

He turns away while using the phone

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/d/d2/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-5.jpg/ v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-5.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/ d/d2/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-5.jpg/v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on- His-Phone-Step-5.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output “></div>”}

You can notice this action when two people are sitting together on the sofa. If your boyfriend picks up the phone and turns slightly away, that’s a suspicious sign. If he has nothing to hide, he’s not afraid of you glancing at the screen. ^{[5] X Research Sources}

If you wonder why he turned away, he might insist that he just turned away for the sake of comfort, not mean anything.

He deletes the messages

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/0/0b/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-6.jpg/ v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-6.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/ 0/0b/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-6.jpg/v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on- His-Phone-Step-6.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output “></div>”}

This may be because he doesn’t want you to read those messages. If you happen to be looking at your boyfriend’s phone and see some dialogue disappearing, it means he deleted it. This is a bad signal because it usually means he doesn’t want to leave any evidence on the phone. ^{[6] X Research Sources}

However, be aware that many people delete messages from time to time to free up space on their phone.

Your boyfriend takes his phone into the bathroom, even when taking a shower

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/7/7a/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-7.jpg/ v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-7.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/ 7/7a/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-7.jpg/v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on- His-Phone-Step-7.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output “></div>”}

This could mean that your boyfriend doesn’t want you to be alone with his phone. If he intentionally grabs his phone anywhere (even to the bathroom) then that’s a warning sign. Maybe your boyfriend always keeps his phone on so that when a notification pops up, you won’t see it. ^{[7] X Research Sources}

However, if he uses his phone for something (like listening to music in the shower) then you have nothing to worry about.

Your boyfriend never lets you use his phone

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/3/34/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-8.jpg/ v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-8.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/ 3/34/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-8.jpg/v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on- His-Phone-Step-8.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output “></div>”}

Your boyfriend might even get mad when you just pick up his phone to check the time. While you can’t always use your boyfriend’s phone, couples often use each other’s phones to order food or listen to a new song on the radio. If he refuses to do even those things, that’s a suspicious sign. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

He may also insist on doing things on his own on his phone even when it’s not convenient (when he’s driving, for example).
A healthy couple’s relationship doesn’t usually include checking each other’s phones, so you shouldn’t expect to check your boyfriend’s text messages or social media at all times.

Your boyfriend gets mad if you find something on his phone

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/0/02/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-9.jpg/ v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-9.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/ 0/02/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-9.jpg/v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on- His-Phone-Step-9.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output “></div>”}

He will probably turn the blame on you. If you check your boyfriend’s phone and find evidence that he’s flirting with other people and bring it up for questioning, he’ll probably look hurt and defensive. You may end up feeling guilty for invading his privacy, and the matter will be left in the open. ^{[9] X Research Source}

This is a classic trick that many people use to escape. While it may be true that you violated his privacy for real, that doesn’t negate the fact that he did something wrong.

He doesn’t agree to talk about your concerns

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/7/73/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-10.jpg/ v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-10.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/ 7/73/Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on-His-Phone-Step-10.jpg/v4-728px-Tell-if-Your-Boyfriend-Is-Hiding-Something-on- His-Phone-Step-10.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output “></div>”}

If you suspect your boyfriend is cheating, it’s best to talk to him. You can raise your doubts and why you feel like he’s acting shady. If he doesn’t do something that you definitely don’t like, he’ll be more than willing to talk to you about it and clarify the issue. On the other hand, if your boyfriend has done something that you don’t accept, he’s probably not going to talk to you about it or he’s going to throw a tantrum.

You can raise the issue by saying things like, “Can we talk? I see you’ve been using your phone all the time lately. What’s up?”

Steps