How Do the Worst Serial Cheaters Get Away With It for Years?

• They clear their browser history
• They lock their devices
• They never use credit cards to make questionable charges
• They travel frequently
• They allay suspicions effectively

According to recent data, a fifth of all marriages experience infidelity. Even more unexpected is the fact that almost 80% of wives who suspect their husbands are cheating turn out to be correct, and about 62% of husbands who suspect the same of their wives are also right.

As of 2024, more than three-quarters (77%) of men confess to an emotional affair, significantly below the number of women engaging in such affairs (91%).

8% of cheaters are caught by their spouses, and third parties catch 4.5%. Surprisingly, more than half (52.4%) confess within a week. 46% of married men report knowing of their wives’ infidelity, as did 30% of married women.

They clear their browser history

Some serial cheaters never get caught despite cheating for a very long time. One strategy they adopt is partially clearing their browser history. Each time they do something online related to the affair, they take the time to clear the browser history of the respective sites. This applies to more than a fake email address or another account. They do this for all sites related to the affair, such as directions to a bar where they’re going to meet the person they’re cheating with or reservation sites for hotels.

However, they don’t clear their entire browser history because it looks suspicious — nobody keeps their entire history clean.

They lock their devices

Some lock their computers, laptops, or phones so their partner can’t access them. If the device isn’t locked or their primary partner knows the code, it puts them at risk of discovery.

They will give a plausible explanation for why they need to suddenly secure their device. They might say that a coworker got into it and began texting people in their contact list.

It’s highly suspicious to suddenly insist on privacy if one’s partner is used to knowing the code to their device. In this scenario, they won’t try to change the password. They just won’t use their device for any suspicious activity.

They never use credit cards

Wily cheaters don’t use their credit cards for suspicious purchases. Charges such as dinners at restaurants or hotel rooms appear on monthly card statements. They use cash to make purchases they don’t want to get caught making.

They travel frequently

Frequent trips away on business or another reason are an effective way of concealing an affair. 57% of women and 62% of men cheat on business trips, and 36% of both admit to cheating with a coworker. It makes sense as you often spend more time with coworkers than with your partner or spouse. When one is away with an illicit partner, the risk of getting caught is much lower. Nobody knows you in another town, state, or country. The likelihood of running into an acquaintance is minimal.

They allay suspicions effectively

Sooner or later, one’s official partner will start getting suspicious. Instead of looking for excuses or getting angry, some cheaters will laugh at the suspicions. By getting angry, one shows a negative rather than a bewildered reaction to an accusation. Anger easily transitions into a heated argument, which the partner getting cheated on is likely to remember.

The cheater will act shocked or surprised by the suspicions, as though it never occurred to them that they were behaving questionably. In addition, they will change some of their suspicious behavior. Their partner might provide a list of specific behaviors they find concerning, like a sudden interest in working out or wearing out-of-character clothes. An open conversation about how they promise to change that behavior will be interpreted as a dedication to improving the relationship.

To get away with cheating, a person will make no dramatic changes, as those look even more suspicious. They might respond to accusations of choosing revealing clothes by not wearing only some of those clothes anymore but holding on to others.