When I was a "kid," I didn't have a smartphone. My mother wouldn't know how to go through it anyway. I've had a computer since I was 12 or 13, and while I don't think it had any security on it (first one was an Amiga 1000), I could have hid something so a normal person wouldn't be able to find it. That computer couldn't get online anyway. I wasn't online at home until I was an adult.

I don't recall ever being searched, but I had no night life and few friends. And my parents were old school hippies. So, basically never?

It's normal in that your parents are responsible for your well-being, and if they overlook something in the name of privacy, it's an abdication of responsibility; a failing, on their part. They cannot say they tried if they did not actually, you know, try.

As an aside, entirely unrelated to the topic at hand, I want to thank you for starting engaging conversations on Lemmy. A lot of people post just to post and nobody really comments. Your posts generate conversation, and even if, such as here with a generational gap, I don't feel I have the kind of insight you're looking for, it makes me want to comment. And I think that is commendable, and should be called out as such. So, thank you for what you're doing on this community/service/app.