Can My Spouse Read My Texts? Illinois Privacy Law in Divorce

This page is for two kinds of readers: people who suspect a spouse or partner is reading their texts, and people who are tempted to read a spouse's phone to get proof for a divorce. The law is the same for both. It explains what Illinois and federal law say, what happens to text messages in an Illinois divorce case, how to get the other side's messages lawfully, and what to do if your own phone has been compromised.

Is it illegal to read my spouse's text messages in Illinois?

It can be, and the risk is real enough that you should assume you need permission. Illinois's definition of "computer" is broad enough to cover a smartphone. The Criminal Code defines "computer" as a device that "accepts, processes, stores, retrieves, or outputs data," and the definition expressly includes "cloud-based networks of remote services hosted on the Internet" (720 ILCS 5/17-0.5). That covers the phone itself and the iCloud or Google account where texts are synced.

Under 720 ILCS 5/17-51, a person commits computer tampering by knowingly, and without the owner's authorization or in excess of the authority granted, accessing a computer, program, or data. The penalty depends on what happened:

• Accessing without authorization: Class B misdemeanor (17-51(a)(1), (b)(1)).
• Accessing and obtaining data, such as reading or copying messages: Class A misdemeanor, and a Class 4 felony for a second or later offense (17-51(a)(2), (b)(2)).
• Accessing and deleting or altering data: Class 4 felony (17-51(a)(3), (b)(3)).

Knowing the passcode does not solve the problem. Section 17-54 lets the factfinder infer lack of authority when access "requires a confidential or proprietary code which has not been issued to or authorized for use by that person." A guessed, watched, or old passcode fits that description.

The facts that matter are who owns the device, whose account the messages live in, what permission was given, and whether it was taken back. Paying the phone bill or being on the same family plan does not answer those questions. If your spouse hands you their unlocked phone and asks you to read a message, that is very different from opening it while they sleep.

What if someone installs spyware or forwards my messages?

Monitoring software moves the conduct into more serious territory.

Eavesdropping. It is a crime to intercept, record, or transcribe, "in a surreptitious manner," any private electronic communication "to which he or she is not a party" without the consent of all parties (720 ILCS 5/14-2(a)(3)). A "private electronic communication" includes text, images, and data sent by phone or computer when the sender or recipient reasonably intends it to be private (720 ILCS 5/14-1(e)). A first offense is a Class 4 felony and a second is a Class 3 felony (720 ILCS 5/14-4(a)). Using or disclosing information you know or should know came from an illegal interception is a separate violation (14-2(a)(5)), and someone who directs another person to do it, or knowingly benefits from it, is treated as a "principal" (14-1(c)).

Cyberstalking. Knowingly and surreptitiously installing "electronic monitoring software or spyware" on a device as a means to harass someone is cyberstalking when it is combined with a threat, placing the person in reasonable apprehension of harm, or soliciting a crime against them (720 ILCS 5/12-7.5(a-4)). That is a Class 4 felony (12-7.5(b)). The statute says an installation is not surreptitious if clear notice was given in advance to the owners and primary users, or if their written or electronic consent was obtained.

Federal law. The federal Wiretap Act prohibits intentionally intercepting electronic communications (18 U.S.C. 2511(1)), with up to five years in prison (2511(4)(a)) and civil damages of the greater of actual damages or statutory damages of $100 a day or $10,000 (18 U.S.C. 2520(c)(2)). The Stored Communications Act makes it a crime to access, without authorization, a facility through which an electronic communication service is provided and obtain a stored message (18 U.S.C. 2701). Whether a particular phone or account fits these federal definitions can be disputed, but the exposure is not worth testing.

Civil lawsuits. Beyond the eavesdropping statute's own civil remedies, which include an injunction and actual and punitive damages (720 ILCS 5/14-6), the Illinois Supreme Court recognizes the tort of intrusion upon seclusion. In Lawlor v. North American Corp. of Illinois, 2012 IL 112530, the claim arose from investigators who impersonated a person to obtain her phone records.

Can text messages be used as evidence in an Illinois divorce?

Yes, if they are obtained properly and meet the rules of evidence.

• Messages you sent or received. These are your own communications. Saving them is not eavesdropping, because 14-2(a)(3) covers communications to which you are "not a party." They still have to be authenticated, meaning there must be "evidence sufficient to support a finding that the matter in question is what its proponent claims" (Ill. R. Evid. 901(a)). The other party's own statements, offered against them, are not hearsay (Ill. R. Evid. 801(d)(2)). For more on proving who sent a message, see authenticating digital evidence in Illinois family cases.
• Messages obtained by interception. Evidence obtained in violation of the eavesdropping article "is not admissible in any civil or criminal trial" (720 ILCS 5/14-5). The narrow exceptions are a criminal case against the person charged with eavesdropping and a situation where all parties to the communication consent to admission.
• Messages taken by logging into someone else's phone or account. The computer tampering provisions do not contain an exclusion rule like section 14-5. That is not a green light. The person who took them still faces criminal exposure, and the conduct itself becomes part of the case.

It also helps to be realistic about what snooping can accomplish. Illinois divides marital property and sets maintenance "without regard to marital misconduct" (750 ILCS 5/503(d) and 504(a)). Proof of an affair does not, by itself, change those results. What can matter is money: spending marital funds on a relationship may be raised as dissipation under 750 ILCS 5/503(d)(2), which has its own notice requirements, and bank and card records come in through ordinary discovery.

In parenting decisions, the court weighs factors such as each parent's willingness to place the child's needs first and to support the child's relationship with the other parent (750 ILCS 5/602.7(b)(12), (13)), and it "shall not consider conduct of a parent that does not affect that parent's relationship to the child" (602.7(c)). Monitoring a co-parent can become relevant when it spills into the child's life, such as using the child's device to do it.

How can I get my spouse's text messages legally?

1. Preserve first. Ask your lawyer to send a preservation demand early so messages and backups are not deleted. A starting point is our evidence preservation drafting aid.
2. Use discovery. Written requests for production, interrogatories, and depositions can reach relevant messages on the other party's devices and accounts. Before filing a discovery motion, Illinois requires the lawyers to make reasonable attempts to resolve the dispute (Ill. S. Ct. R. 201(k)).
3. Ask for a court-ordered examination when it is justified. If there is reason to think messages were deleted or hidden, your lawyer can ask the court for an order allowing a neutral forensic examiner to collect them under agreed limits.
4. Understand what the phone company can give you. The Stored Communications Act says providers "shall not knowingly divulge" the contents of stored communications (18 U.S.C. 2702(a)). Its list of exceptions does not include a subpoena in a private civil case. Providers may disclose non-content records, such as logs, to a non-government party (2702(c)(6)), which can show the volume and timing of contact.

How do I know if my spouse is reading my texts, and what should I do?

Common signs include your spouse knowing details that were in your messages, unfamiliar devices listed on your Apple ID or Google account, sign-in alerts you did not trigger, messages already marked as read, and settings or apps you did not change or install.

Think about safety before you cut off access. If your spouse has been controlling or abusive, suddenly locking them out can escalate things. Talk with an advocate about a safety plan first. The Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-877-863-6338, and the National Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-800-799-7233 (or text START to 88788). If you are in immediate danger, call 911.

Document before you change anything.

• Screenshot the device lists, sign-in alerts, and any app or profile you do not recognize, with dates visible.
• Write a short timeline: when you noticed, what your spouse knew, and how they could have known it.
• If you suspect spyware, do not factory-reset the phone until the evidence has been preserved. A reset can destroy exactly what a forensic examiner or the police would need.

Then secure your accounts. From a device your spouse has never had access to, change your Apple ID or Google password, turn on two-factor authentication tied to a number you control, remove unknown devices and sessions, update the recovery email and phone, change your phone passcode, and remove any fingerprint or face your spouse may have enrolled. Review family-sharing and location-sharing settings as well.

Use the legal tools. You can report computer tampering, eavesdropping, or cyberstalking to the police. If the monitoring is part of a pattern of harassment or control, it may support an order of protection under the Illinois Domestic Violence Act. Among the available remedies, a judge can order a wireless carrier to transfer your phone number, and the account responsibility for it, off a shared plan to you (750 ILCS 60/214(b)(18)). See orders of protection in Illinois.

Do not retaliate. Reading your spouse's phone to "even the score" exposes you to the same statutes and hands the other side an issue.

When should I talk to a lawyer?

• You have found signs that your phone or accounts are being monitored.
• You have already looked at, copied, or forwarded your spouse's messages. Do not show them to anyone else until you get advice, because using or disclosing unlawfully intercepted information is a separate violation.
• You need messages from the other side and want them in a form a court will accept.
• The monitoring is part of a pattern of control or threats.

Related reading: whether a spouse can access your email and social media.

To talk through your situation with Jonathan D. Steele, call (312) 621-4394 or reach out through the contact page.

Sources

• Criminal Code of 2012, 720 ILCS 5/14-1, 14-2, 14-4, 14-5, 14-6 (eavesdropping); 5/12-7.5 (cyberstalking); 5/17-0.5, 17-51, 17-54 (computer tampering): ilga.gov
• Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, 750 ILCS 5/503, 504, 602.7: ilga.gov
• Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986, 750 ILCS 60/214: ilga.gov
• 18 U.S.C. 2511, 2520, 2701, 2702: Wiretap Act and Stored Communications Act
• Illinois Rules of Evidence 801 and 901; Illinois Supreme Court Rule 201(k): illinoiscourts.gov
• Lawlor v. North American Corp. of Illinois, 2012 IL 112530: opinion

This article explains general Illinois law as of October 2026. It is not legal advice about your situation, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Written by Jonathan D. Steele

Chicago divorce attorney with cybersecurity certifications (Security+, ISC2 CC, Google Cybersecurity Professional Certificate). Illinois Super Lawyers Rising Star 2016-2025.

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