• by Erik Sass , Staff Writer @eriksass1, February 13, 2013

No surprise here: people who are cheating on their spouses or partners are using “fake” social media accounts to help them conduct their affairs, according to a survey of almost 2,400 U.S. adults who had cheated on their partner in the past year conducted by www.couponcodes4u.com and cited in the New York Daily News. (Admittedly, it’s not quite clear why philanderers would open up to a coupon Web site about their deepest, darkest secrets, but maybe there was a cool incentive like free breath mints or something.)

The survey found that 67% of cheaters surveyed said they have a “fake” Facebook account for philandering, while half said they have a secret email or Twitter account. Again unsurprisingly, respondents said they create fake social media accounts so they can conceal the fact that they’re married from potential partners. Nor am I particularly shocked to learn that it doesn’t always work: about half the respondents said their online prowling has been discovered by their spouses or significant others.

Which brings us to the subject of divorce: a few years back, I wrote about a survey conducted by the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, in which 80% of respondents (all divorce attorneys) said they'd seen an increase in cases involving social media. Divorce lawyers are collecting evidence of infidelity from online photo albums, profile pages, wall comments, status updates and tweets, according to the AAML.

In a subsequent AAML survey, Facebook was identified as "the 'primary source'" of evidence in divorce cases by fully two-thirds of divorce lawyers. The AAML also found that many divorce attorneys have begun using sites like Flowtown (acquired by Demandforce back in 2011) to uncover social media profiles by searching for an email address.

And oh yeah: Happy Valentine’s Day!