Study unearths nations most embarrassing Phone Faux Pas

Wednesday 9 April 2025

Top 15 phone faux pas and etiquette fails revealed - with Instagram mishaps and accidental texts topping the list

ALL Brits who use a smartphone have made a phone faux pas, with nearly 2 in 3 admitting to texting the wrong person

Bad phone contracts attributed to Brits tech related mishaps, as running out of data and poor phone signal are a cause of frustration

Sky Mobile is offering Brits a break from unnecessary phone faux pas with flexible data plans that can change to suit your needs and 99% network coverage to help keep you connected

Texting the wrong person and liking an ex's old social media post have topped a list of the most common mobile blunders - or phone faux pas' a study has revealed.

The research has lifted the lid on the most cringe-worthy mobile moments that leave Brits red-faced and flustered. From social media slip-ups to the classic (but still embarrassing) pocket dial, the research reveals the top 15 mobile mishaps people are most guilty of committing.

The study of 2,000 Brits was commissioned by Sky Mobile and has uncovered that sending a text to the wrong person (61%), pocket dials (34%) and accidental typos (29%) are among the most common phone faux pas'.

Nearly 1 in 5 (16%) have been caught red-handed (or red-faced) by accidentally liking an ex's old social media post, while sending a message in the wrong group chat has left over one in ten of us (11%) cringing.

The top 15 phone faux pas according to Brits from Sky Mobile:

Sending a text to the wrong person - 61%

Making an unintentional phone call (pocket dial) -34%

Accidental typos (for ducks sake!) - 29%

Dropping your phone in public - 24%

Reading a WhatsApp message too quickly - 18%

Forgetting to put your phone on silent during a meeting or event - 17%

Accidentally liking an exs old social media post - 16%

Accidentally liking a social media post from years ago - 12%

Having bad phone signal on an important call - 12%

The research revealed how embarrassed phone faux pas can make Brits feel, with the supposedly' tech-savvy Gen Z (aged 18-24) being the most distressed when making a mistake online (74%). In fact, the nation is left so on edge by mishaps with their devices that 2.2M Brits have even considered deleting social media completely after making an accidental slip-up.

Other methods for trying to fix phone faux pas include Googling how to delete posts and messages (16%), adjusting privacy settings (20%) and blaming it all on a family member or friend playing a prank (8%).

From going on do not disturb to avoid notifications (23%), to waiting 10 minutes before responding to messages due to fearing judgement for speedy replies (22%), people are adopting various tactics to avoid being caught out in phone faux pas.

Ben Case, Managing Director of Connectivity at Sky, said: "Phone mishaps can get the best of us and whilst we cant prevent those embarrassing text typos, at Sky Mobile we believe there's no need to suffer with a bad phone plan. With 99% network coverage and flexible data plans, you'll remain connected for those all-important moments.

The study discovered poor network plans are causing some of the nation's top phone blunders as having bad phone signal on an important call (12%) and running out of data (8%) are a source of embarrassment for many Brits.

With Sky Mobile's Piggybank, you can save any unused data to use when needed most, and the Mix benefit easily lets you make your data plan bigger and smaller to suit you, so you can spend less on what you need and more on what you want.

Notes to Editors:

For more information, please contact the Sky team on sky@taylorherring.com / 020 8206 5151

Sky Mobile network benefits at a glance:

99% network coverage

Roll - roll your spare data into your Sky Piggybank for use when you need it

Piggybank - share spare data in your Sky Piggybank with up to seven SIMs on your account or exchange it for rewards

Watch - enjoy hours and hours of streaming on Sky apps such as Sky Go, Sky Sports and more, without using your data allowance

Mix - Change your data plan whenever you like to suit your needs

Swap - swap to a new phone or tablet whenever you want, before your contract ends

Text to Switch - simply text PAC to 65075 to get your switching code. We'll take care of the rest

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