A group of neighborhood women found an unconventional way to handle a persistent snooper in their midst—and Reddit users are loving it.

The incident was detailed in a post shared by u/foodf***flee on June 17 to the r/pettyrevenge subreddit. The tale of subtle yet scathing retaliation against a nosy neighbor has earned 5,000 upvotes and dozens of comments from amused Reddit users.

According to the post, titled “Snooping Neighbour Got a Taste of Their own Medicine,” the story originated from the Redditor’s mother and centers around a woman named Judy, whose habit of snooping through other people’s homes had become a well-known nuisance in their social circle.

“This is my mom’s story,” the user wrote. “Every week a few neighborhood ladies plan a meet-up in any one of their houses. Three weeks ago it took place at our home, and my mom caught Judy coming out of my old bedroom when she had left on the pretext of going to the washroom.”

Though Judy claimed she “lost her way,” the excuse didn’t hold up. “She had been in our home before,” the post noted. That incident led the mother to consult with others in the group, who revealed similar experiences of finding Judy in unauthorized parts of their homes. When confronted, the post claimed, Judy became “rude and defensive.”

A recent survey by Talker Research for Newsweek found that disputes among neighbors are surprisingly common, ranging from noise complaints and lawn battles to property damage, intrusions and boundary disputes.

Rather than confronting Judy directly, the women in the Reddit post opted for what the poster describes a taste of her own medicine. “Last Saturday, when the get together was at Judy’s place, my mother and her friends bought googly eyes stickers and one by one they left the room on pretext of washroom and pasted those stickers all around the house,” the user wrote. They even stuck them on Judy’s mailbox, front door, and fence.

The result? “A couple of neighbors had quite a show of her breakdown on Sunday going in and out, up and down her house looking for more stickers and removing them. Pretty sure the plan worked,” the post concluded.

Gregg Ward, executive director at The Center for Respectful Leadership, also cautioned against retaliatory behavior. “If your neighbor doesn’t behave in ways you want them to, the last thing you should do is get into a tit-for-tat battle with them,” Ward previously told Newsweek. “It never ends well.”

Jodi RR Smith, an etiquette consultant, agreed, telling Newsweek that the situation could have been handled with more grace and boundaries.

“What the mom decided to do, with the rest of the group, was just cruel,” Smith said. “Judy knows she is a snoop. Judy knows the group knows she is a snoop. Now Judy knows that the group had a discussion and decided to make her the focus of their practical joke.”

Smith suggested a more tactful approach, recommending hosts preemptively set boundaries in a group setting, such as by saying: “As you know the bathroom is at the top of the stairs. The door is open. Please do not enter any rooms where the door is closed.”

“And if the behavior continues, a direct conversation is key, saying something like ‘Judy, I need you to stop snooping around in my home. If this continues, I will not be able to invite you back,” Smith noted.

She added: “Judy now needs to decide if she will alter her behavior and if she wants this group as friends.”

‘Genius’

Reddit users responded with glee to the mom’s “petty” reaction to her neighbor’s behavior.

“Genius! This is the way,” wrote u/goodOmen78. Another user, u/Due_Classic_4090, added: “That is so petty, I love it!!!! Hahaha.” U/Fire_or_water_kai agreed, calling it a “master class in petty!”

U/pc_principal_88 said: “This was actually pretty satisfying to imagine. Hopefully she gets the hint and chills tf [the f***] out when it comes to snooping thru peoples things, etc.”

While Judy’s future status in the neighborhood group remains unclear, one Redditor, u/obscurititty404, summed up the lingering question for many, saying: “It blows my mind that she’s still invited to those events!”

Newsweek has contacted the original poster for comment via the Reddit messaging system.

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