A customer sends a text message from her phone in a mobile phone shop in Jakarta June 18, 2008.

 Can't help checking your partner's text messages on the sly? You're not alone, with an Australian survey showing one in three mobile phone users are text message snoops, and the consequences can often be heart-breaking.

 The online survey, conducted for telecoms service provider Virgin Mobile Australia, shows that women are more likely than men to check their partner's phone in secret.

 It also revealed that 73 percent of these sneaky text checkers have found out things they later wished they hadn't, and 10 percent ended their relationship because of SMS snooping.

 "In a society when we very rarely let our mobile phones out of our sight, it's quite amazing to think that for a lot of us the minute we jump in the shower, someone might be checking up on us," Virgin Mobile's Amber Morris said in a statement.

 Slightly more than 500 mobile phone users in Australia aged between 18 and 29 were polled by a market research firm in July.

 The survey found that 60 percent spy on text messages when their partner is in the shower, while just over 41 percent do it when they are in the same room.

 Nearly 45 percent said they had discovered flirtatious or sexual texts.

 "With so many modes of communication available these days, it's difficult to keep track of your partner's whereabouts or who they're chatting to and when," Virgin Mobile quoted relationship expert Samantha Brett as saying.

 "Flirting is age old, but the fact that it can now be tracked on your phone makes a nervous partner a paranoid text-checker."

 Brett advised SMS snoops to stop. "If you suspect that your partner is up to something, talk about it. Text checking can turn into a vicious cycle, and it can easily be avoided," she added.

总是忍不住偷看情侣的短信？你并不是个特例。澳大利亚的一项调查显示，三分之一的手机用户偷看过情侣的短信，而结果往往是痛心不已。

 这项为澳大利亚Virgin移动通信公司所做的在线调查显示，女性比男性更爱偷窥情侣的手机短信。

 此外，调查显示，73%的“查岗者”事后后悔自己不该那么做，而10%的人则因此与对方分手。

 Virgin移动通信公司的阿姆伯•莫里斯在一份声明中说：“当今社会的人们可谓‘机不离手’，想想你冲个凉的工夫，可能就有人在查你的岗，真是有点不可思议。”

 澳大利亚一家市场调查公司于七月份对500多名18岁至29岁的手机用户开展了此项调查。

 调查发现，60%的人在对方洗澡时查看他（她）的短信，略多于41%的人则当着对方的面这么做。

 近45%的受访者称，他们在伴侣的手机上发现了调情或色情短信。

 Virgin移动通信公司援引两性关系专家萨曼塔•布勒特的话说：“当今社会的通讯方式多种多样，所以想要追踪对方身在何处，何时、与何人聊过天的确有些困难。”

 “调情并不新鲜，但现在这么做会在你的手机上留下蛛丝马迹，而这则把你的另一半变成了一个时刻警惕的短信监督狂。”

 布勒特建议避免这种偷看对方短信的行为。她说：“如果你怀疑对方有什么问题，直接跟他（她）谈谈。偷看短信会变成一种恶性循环，而这是很容易避免的。”

 Vocabulary:

 on the sly: in a way intended to escape notice（秘密地）

 snoop:窥视；探听