A growing number of married Indians are engaging in what researchers are calling “digital affairs” – emotionally intimate, often flirtatious relationships conducted entirely online. According to recent data from extramarital dating platform Gleeden, 40% of married respondents in India confessed to participating in these virtual relationships, which, while not physically consummated, often include suggestive messages, emojis, and secret chats that mimic romantic intimacy.
Unlike traditional infidelity, digital affairs leave no physical traces. Instead, they unfold quietly through typing bubbles and private messages—many sent during the late-night hours when spouses are asleep. Gleeden’s data reveals peak user activity occurs between 10 p.m. and 1 a.m., a time that may indicate emotional loneliness within marriages.
Sybil Shiddell, Relationship Manager at Gleeden India, noted, “As India changes socially and digitally, the normativity of relationships is shifting as well – quietly, painfully, often one unread message at a time.”
While 65% of respondents claim these interactions are harmless fun, nearly 37% acknowledge emotional infidelity can be more damaging than physical cheating – yet continue their behavior. Notably, 72% of users involved in digital affairs said they have no intention of ending their marriages, using online interactions as a form of emotional release or escape.
The trend is not limited by gender. Men aged 30–45 and women aged 25–40 are the most active demographic on Gleeden. Moreover, 56% of female users reported feeling more “heard” and “valued” by their online connections than by their spouses. Therapists now warn that digital cheating is becoming a frequent cause of marital strain, raising questions about where emotional boundaries lie in an age of constant digital connectivity. As Shiddell suggests, the real threat to fidelity may no longer be physical, but “in the cloud.”
