????去年春天，在法國總統(tǒng)弗朗索瓦?奧朗德正處于秘密戀情的陣痛之際，皮尤研究中心(Pew Research Center )的一項(xiàng)調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn)，在他的國家，只有47%的國民認(rèn)為出軌在道德上是不可接受的。不過，即使法國人對婚外情漠不關(guān)心，那也不意味著他們喜歡被逮個(gè)現(xiàn)形。移動設(shè)備和互聯(lián)網(wǎng)（以及裝備這兩大殺器的狗仔隊(duì)）使得配偶一方更容易獲悉另一方的不軌行為，但技術(shù)同樣可以幫助行為不端的人掩蓋自己的行跡。上谷歌(Google)隨意搜索一下，你就可以發(fā)現(xiàn)，在法國，為花心男或放蕩女提供不在場托詞已經(jīng)成為一項(xiàng)名副其實(shí)的作坊式產(chǎn)業(yè)。

????一位名叫杰勒德（因本文話題的私密性，此處隱去他的姓氏）的老派私家偵探聲稱，在調(diào)查時(shí)意識到“不忠的人需要自由空間”之后，他于2005年開創(chuàng)了法國首個(gè)提供私通借口的服務(wù)項(xiàng)目?，F(xiàn)在，他提供雙向服務(wù)，既追蹤出軌配偶的行蹤，同時(shí)也通過他的網(wǎng)站mon.alibi.free.fr為他們提供托詞。杰勒德聲稱，他從未接受過會產(chǎn)生利益沖突的業(yè)務(wù)。

????出軌的客戶要求他提供各種虛假證明，從機(jī)票到（假想的）會議議程，不一而足。他的秘書在電腦上創(chuàng)造不在場證據(jù)，額外收費(fèi)后，還可以打一個(gè)電話或者發(fā)個(gè)短信以坐實(shí)這些虛假的證詞。此外，杰勒德還向那些毫無頭緒的客戶推薦一攬子方案。

????比如，提供一個(gè)虛假的周末培訓(xùn)會邀請函將耗費(fèi)39歐元。每額外增加一個(gè)不在場證據(jù)——一封電郵確認(rèn)函，一張來自當(dāng)事人理應(yīng)所處城鎮(zhèn)的餐廳收據(jù)——就需要額外支付39歐元?！斑@些證據(jù)可以迅速增加，”杰勒德說。盡管出軌或許不會受經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退影響，但愿意支付的隱藏成本似乎并非如此?！皫啄昵?，客戶往往二話不說，徑直掏出500歐元購買不在場證據(jù)，”他指出?！暗F(xiàn)在，一聽說每件證據(jù)需要39美元，他們就怨聲載道——但這就是你必須為滾床單支付的代價(jià)?！?/p>

????10年來，他已經(jīng)為2,000多人提供過不在場證據(jù)。出人意料的是，他說70%的客戶是女性，她們使用服務(wù)的方式也有別于男性。“男客戶往往事后才找我，希望我?guī)兔忉屢幌滤麄兩现苣┑男雄?。女客戶則傾向于提前規(guī)劃。她們會說：‘兩周后，我打算跟我的情人浪漫三天，你必須得給我找個(gè)好借口。”

????繼杰勒德創(chuàng)辦這項(xiàng)服務(wù)之后，許多人紛紛入市，而這門生意所需要的本錢無外乎一臺電腦和一些圖形設(shè)計(jì)技能而已。32歲的塞巴斯蒂安居住在克萊蒙費(fèi)朗附近，6年前在電視上看到這個(gè)生財(cái)之道之后，他隨即開啟了自己的在線服務(wù) (expert-alibi.com) ?！拔耶?dāng)時(shí)失業(yè)在家，亟需工作，所以我想為什么不試一下呢？”他回憶說。他一邊學(xué)習(xí)如何成為一位居家兒童托管服務(wù)提供者，一邊建設(shè)網(wǎng)站?，F(xiàn)在，他把時(shí)間一分為二——照顧孩子的工作持續(xù)至下午6點(diǎn)，然后開始偽造不在場證據(jù)，一直忙到深夜。塞巴斯蒂安的客戶中，男性略多于女性。他的收入起伏不定，冬季一個(gè)月約800歐元，夏季的營收額大約是冬季的兩倍。法國人每年夏天往往會度過一個(gè)遠(yuǎn)離工作，顯然也遠(yuǎn)離婚姻生活的悠長假期。

????Last spring, while French president Fran?ois Hollande was in the throes of his secret love affair, a Pew Research Center poll found that a mere 47% of his fellow citizens consider adultery to be morally unacceptable. Even if the French are blasé about fooling around, though, that doesn't mean they like getting caught. Mobile devices and the Internet (and paparazzi armed with both) make it easier to know when a spouse is behaving badly, but technology can also help cheaters cover their tracks. A quick Google search reveals that providing alibis for philanderers has become a veritable cottage industry in France.

????An old-school private detective named Gérard (whose last name is withheld for the purposes of this story) started what he claims is the country's first alibi service in 2005 after realizing during his investigations that "unfaithful people need room to be free." Now he plays both sides, tracking straying spouses as well as providing excuses for them through his site, mon.alibi.free.fr. He claims he's never had a conflict of interest.

????Adulterous clients ask him for a range of fake documents, from plane tickets to programs for (imaginary) conventions. His secretary creates the alibis on her computer, and for an extra fee will place a phony phone call or send an SMS to back up the subterfuge. Gérard can also suggest entire scenarios for clients who are short of ideas.

????A bogus invitation for, say, a weekend job training session will cost 39 euros. Each additional alibi -- an e-mail confirmation, a restaurant receipt from the town where the person is supposed to be -- runs 39 euros more. "It can add up quickly," Gérard says. And though infidelity might be recession-proof, it seems that hiding it is not. "A few years ago, clients would easily drop 500 euros on alibis," he notes. "Now when we tell them each document will cost 39 euros, they say oh là là -- but that's the price for a roll in the sack."

????In 10 years he has provided alibis for more than 2,000 people. Surprisingly, he says that 70% of his clients are women, and that they use his service differently from men. "Men come to me afterwards, looking to explain where they were the weekend before. Women plan. They'll say, 'In two weeks I'm spending three days with my lover, and you have to find me a good excuse.'"

????Since Gérard started, many others have entered the marketplace, needing little more than a computer and some graphic design skills to get started. A 32-year-old named Sébastien, who lives near Clermont-Ferrand, started his online service (expert-alibi.com) after seeing the concept on TV six years ago. "I was unemployed and needed to work, so I thought, why not this?" he recalls. He set up his site at the same time he was studying to be an at-home childcare provider, and now he divides his time between the two -- taking care of kids until 6 p.m., then forging alibis into the night. His clientele is slightly more male than female, and his revenue fluctuates from about 800 euros a month in the winter to twice that during the summer, when the French take long vacations from work and, evidently, from marital life.