I wouldn't be too concerned about it. A few of my BFs over the years have done more or less what your SO just did and I've never found it to be a sign of trouble.
I think it's pretty normal to be curious about what your ex is up to. IMO, a little nosiness about the ex isn't a threat to a present relationship. I don't know your SO, so can't say if it's an ego thing or not, but in my experience, it's mostly harmless curiosity.

It's a little different because my exes are guys I dated for anything between three weeks and three years - I wasn't married to any of them...
But if I bump into an ex on the street or on the internet, I like to find out of he's in a relationship. If he is, I'm curious about what she does, where she's from, if it's serious, etc.
It's not that I have any romantic interest in him, or that I want him to still be hung up on me... It's that he used to be important to me and I'd like to know what his life is like now.

I suppose it was the way he was asking. It felt more than just being curious. B/c he wouldn't straight out ask. just made very vague comments. Just odd... things that make an ex think "ohhh he's trying to check up on me"

But i understand what you mean.

I agree it is probably harmless. Probably curiosity.

I would be concerned if he's being distant or having problems (starting fights, being critical, etc.) with you, then I would talk about it. I would be extremely concerned if he were being distant and found out she was responding to him (emailing each other, meeting for lunch, talking on the phone) because he should be talking to you about your relationship. It doesn't sound like that's the case though.

I used to think we had a gut feeling that told us when something is wrong, but I also now believe that if we have insecurities about things, we create that gut feeling sometimes when there really isn't anything to worry about, so I don't rely on it. I think the best way to deal with it, is by communicating how we feel. I also subscribe to the notion that if you don't want to know, don't ask. and that would include going through his computer history... if you are looking for something because you have trust issues, sometimes we find things that we can convince ourselves is proof of our concern. I can't say if that's true in your case because only you know your entire situation and you know your husband.

About a year ago, out of boredom or curiosity or morbidness, I googled the worst ex in the universe.

I don't know if I've mentioned it here, but he's the one who *always* managed to smack me with whatever door I followed him through.

He said he was 6' tall, & he didn't have eyes in the back of his head & I should watch where I was going.

One fine day, I realized that my father was about 6' tall, my brothers were around 6' tall, one ex-husband & more than one ex-boyfriend were 6' or so tall...
& not a one of them ever had hit me with a door.

Believe me, idle curiosity does *not* mean missing someone or wanting him/her back.

"he's the one who *always* managed to smack me with whatever door I followed him through."

I thought you were using a metaphor and thought "Hmm, sounds like one of my exes. Always making bad plans that I'd go along with and then I'd be the one to take the brunt of the trouble that followed"
Until I read the rest of your post and realized you meant an actual, literal, physical DOOR! That's even worse than my bad plans guy.

I looked up my last XBF recently. Just was curious what he is doing, he has a website, so it was pretty easy. I certainly never want him back (he didn't smack me with the door like sylvia's X haha but there was a lot of metahorical smacking hha). So it really means nothing.

I gotta get started writing that book...