How to Catch a Cheating Spouse, Part Two: Cyber-Sleuthing for the Internet Age

Too often these days people are finding outlets for infidelity on the internet. From internet pornography, which many people don't consider to be cheating, to cybersex, to online dating sites which help to arrange actual meetings, the internet can be used for a wide range of unsavory purposes and can lead to real infidelity.

Using a few tech-savvy techniques, you can determine if your significant other is cheating with the help of the internet, or if your suspicions are unfounded.

DESKTOP INDEXES

A relatively new invention in the world of the personal computer is the "desktop index." Programs such as Google Desktop and Windows Desktop Search index the entire contents of a computer and allow users to search for files, or even the contents of files. This means that any emails sent from or to your computer can be searched after they're indexed.

Using keywords such as "wife," "husband," "meet," "our place," and hundreds more that you might think are suspicious, you can find emails sent or received, even if the email account is password protected.

If your spouse is less than tech-savvy, you can install this program and it will index the desktop in a couple of hours. You can search and remove the program without anyone ever knowing.

COOKIES AND HISTORY

Similar to the desktop index is a much older, but tried-and-true method of online detective work - cookies and the history folder.

In this age of online relationships, it is possible that your partner is cheating on you with some anonymous character from the internet. Online personal sites that range in focus from relationships to brief sexual encounters, make meeting people for affairs easier than ever. But you can discover if your spouse has visited these sites quite easily, so long as he or she isn't intentionally covering the tracks.

A "cookie" is a small text file that resides in a special folder. This cookie is usually an innocent bunch of text that tells the web browser something about the web sites visited. The title of a cookie is usually a hint to the website, and by opening the cookie in a text editor, the information can be viewed. This will easily give away any suspect sites that the web browser has been directed to. To find the cookies folder, do a windows search for the word "cookies" and the resulting folder of that name will contain the files.

Similarly, the web browser's history can be viewed, depending on the browser, by navigating to the "view" menu and finding its option or hitting Ctrl-H in most browsers. The history will show a comprehensive history of sites visited, the good, the bad, and the ugly - and the list is usually searchable.

KEYLOGGERS

A keylogger is a small program that runs secretly on your computer and captures all of the keystrokes that are made. This means that you can capture passwords for secret email accounts, and even the text of a typed email. This is probably the best way to delve into the secret online life of your spouse, but it might also be considered the most devious.

While the things that your spouse does in private email accounts may be reprehensible, they are private. Using a keylogger to steal a password may have unwanted repercussions, particularly if your partner finds out and he or she was innocent after all.

If you choose to use a keylogger, search the internet for "free keylogger" to download some of the better known and more effective programs.