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Majority of Parents Monitor Their Teen's Digital Activity, Pew Study Finds

More than 60 percent of parents said they've checked which websites their teens have visited, according to a report by the Pew Research Center.
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If you’ve ever felt guilty about snooping on your kid’s digital life, don’t worry — you’re not alone. Most parents can’t resist the urge to monitor the digital lives and behaviors of their teenagers, according to a new study released Thursday.

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Teenager with cell phoneJim Seida / NBC News

More than 60 percent of parents said they’ve checked which websites their teens have visited and nearly half admitted to looking through their children’s text messages and call records, according to a report by the Pew Research Center. The report surveyed parents of children ages 13 to 17.

A majority of parents said they have “digitally grounded” their teen, with 65 percent saying they’ve taken away cellphone or Internet privileges as punishment.

More than 40 percent of parents said they know the password to their teen's cellphone and 48 percent know the password to their teen's email account.

While many parents are taking a hands-on approach in their snooping, less than a quarter of parents said they used tech to monitor or control their children’s behavior.

Only 16 percent of parents said they use parental controls to restrict a teen’s cellphone use, and the same percentage of parents surveyed said they use monitoring tools to track their child’s location with his or her cellphone, the study found.