I mean in real life (not over the internet). Do you get a sense if the person you are talking to is trying to lie or cover something up?

I don't think I'm that good at these sort of things. I could get a hint that the person might be stretching the truth by noticing small moments of tension in the face. Most of the time I just get that "feeling". Maybe I need more experience. I heard some people are actually pretty good at this practice (maybe some teachers and cops?). Anyway, can you notice if a person is lying or not?

Well, sometimes I sense that.

Usually not, since it's really easy to cover things on the internets.

That and I'm 7 years old lithuanian girl in Uzbekistan, using a finnish computer.

No, I am the worst possible person at telling if someone is lying or not. It's all or nothing. Either I trust everyone, or I don't trust anyone. It flips depending on my mood.

I can usually tell if I've spent more than a few days with someone. But it's different when you ask someone about something they'd lie about and they expect you to. Or if the person is good at lying. If it's something like that, you have to know them really well (and then you'd probably already doubt what they tell you).

As for how to tell: I would say eye contact, tone of voice, and facial expression are important, but not too hard to fake. I think you have to judge based on their response whether or not what they're saying sounds truthful or like something they'd want you to believe. And a lot of it depends on what type of question it is.

I can always tell...sadly because I'm experienced.

Yes

Yes... its sort of like a 6th sense.

Either I'm really good, or someone I know is really bad at being a liar.

I remember watching a psychology video on this. The body language you're supposed to watch out for are, other than already posted, animated hands. If they're very free and expressive, then they're likely telling the truth. If they're clenched together or otherwise static then it's more likely to be a lie. Also, if a person says "I" ("I did _____", and so forth, rather than "this happened...") often they're telling the truth. I think the reason for this was they're reserving their energy and thought processes in order to produce a lie, because it takes a lot of thought to make up a story that covers all your bases. If they're using "I", then the story is being told from a more personal perspective and therefore more likely to have happened (I'm sure Tenshu can clarify a few of those points).

Obviously these are generalisations: someone who knows how to lie well will be able to cover things like those up.

To answer the topic, I tend to be distrustful of other people unless I know them well, or they're not telling me something I find plausible. Just the way I am, I guess.

I think I'm good at it, but I'm actually probably pretty bad at it, because I'm paranoid, so I always think someone is lying or not telling the whole truth.

People rarely lie to me, but I do rarely ask anything of anyone...

When people do lie to me I always find i'm a bit suspicious at the time.

There are a lot of body language cues you can pick up on when someone is lying.

Such as...?

I can tell when a woman is lying, cos I've had my fair share of lying whores.

their voice has a slight tone in it, they speaker nicer, they pause more, and cover the pauses by changing the subject. Watch their eyes as well, its a dead give away.

Men, i dont have a clue, but i usually dont care

if(getThingFlags(source) & 0x8){
  do her}
elseif(getThingFlags(source) & 0x4){
  do other babe}
else{
  do a dude}

Lol, Ruthv. One of my ex always used to somehow make her breasts stand out when she told a lie or was mad. Don't think she did it on purpose, and don't know how to really describe it, she just seemed to... shy away and take a sexier pose. *shrugs*

I loved it when she lied to me.

It depends on the individual.

Lack of eye contact, general nervousness, tenseness, fidgetting. Gtranted, they aren't going to be there all the time, and people who are adept at lying aren't going to exhibit that body language, but they're good clues.

I never make eye contact. I'm always nervous, fidgety, and tense. Sometimes I worry that people think I'm lying to them when I'm really not. :p It's just who I am.

I'm so paranoid it doesn't really matter.

Often, yes. It depends on the context. If they have a reason to lie, it's much easier to tell, etc.

I can usually tell if someone is lying. And at the same time, I'm awesome at lying myself and having no one doubt me. I'm the master of my expressions. :p

Covering part of their mouth while speaking (either by itching their nose or rubbing their lips) and looking up and to the left are big signs that someone is lying. You'd practically have to practice to prevent yourself from doing either one.

Not really good at it. Also, I almost never lie, but when I absolutely have to, I do so in a quite convincing manner. I simply make myself believe I'm telling the truth for a while. It's pretty easy, actually.

But then, I don't even remember the last time I had to lie, and even then, it was probably for someone else. I'm a pretty honest guy. I do, however, remember the very FIRST time (ever) I lied, and am still ashamed of it. I was 3, maybe 4 years old, I think. Heh.

I can tell when my brother is lying pretty much 99% of the time. He just has this "look" on his face, almost as if you can tell he's trying to have a blank face. I just have a problem of laughing when I lie, cuz my lies are so extravagant

I really have not had much practice in telling if someone is lying, most people I hang around are pretty honest with me. I am a damned good liar though. Especially if it is to get myself out of trouble.

There's supposed to be some sort of way of telling by how the person's eyes move, something about the left and the right... dunno.
I know that my mom's friend is lying because her lips are moving.
I lie all the time. In fact, everything I say is a lie.
...

-Except for that...

Same here. It doesn't matter who's saying it. If I have any reason to disbelieve it, I think they're lying.

The Secret Service, the top scorers on the test, only scored 65% right on the test. Most guys, including most guys on this thread, overestimate their ability to spot a lie. (Kassim, Brehm, Fein, 2003 I think)

The most leaking channel is the voice (which explains why the secret service is the best, or the least bad, at this).

i can tell really well, probably because i'm a good lyer myself. My girlfriend always squeezes more when shees lying but it's different for evryone so i can't really call myself that much of a human lie detector can i?