10 Sneaky Ways Teens Hide Online Activity

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A recent survey commissioned by software security firm McAfee found that 71 percent of teenagers admit to hiding online activities from their parents. In many cases, parents were unaware of what their kids were up to online, or that kids could get into real-life trouble on the internet at all. 

Here are the top ten ways that teens sneak around online.

1.       Clearing the browser history (53%)

2.       Close/minimize browser when parent walked in (46%)

3.       Hide or delete instant messages or videos (34%)

4.       Lie or omit details about online activities (23%)

5.       Use a computer your parents don’t check (23%)

6.       Use an internet-enabled mobile device (21%)

7.       Use privacy settings to make certain content viewable only by friends, not parents (20%)

8.       Use private browsing modes (20%)

9.  Create private email address unknown to parents (15%)

10.   Create duplicate/fake social network profiles (9%)

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Stephanie Pappas
Stephanie Pappas
Live Science Contributor

Stephanie Pappas is a contributing writer for Live Science, covering topics ranging from geoscience to archaeology to the human brain and behavior. She was previously a senior writer for Live Science but is now a freelancer based in Denver, Colorado, and regularly contributes to Scientific American and The Monitor, the monthly magazine of the American Psychological Association. Stephanie received a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of South Carolina and a graduate certificate in science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz.