Petition inaccessible due to cyber attacks, authenticity of signatures remains questionable

A petition website has been rendered inaccessible due to ongoing cyberattacks originating from abroad, according to reports from Slovenian media. The site, hosted under the domain stevogomhome.si, was launched by former politician Miha Brejc, who claims the platform has become a target of sustained digital assaults. In a phone interview with journalist Tomaz Kavčič of the online portal Zanima.me, Brejc stated that the site’s unavailability has raised questions about the credibility of its signatories. The petition, which initially gained traction as a grassroots initiative, appears to have been hastily developed without implementing standard security protocols. According to Kavčič, this lack of preparation led to concerns over the integrity of the data collected. While some fraudulent entries, such as fabricated names and duplicate submissions, are relatively easy to detect and remove, verifying the authenticity of other signatures remains difficult without confirmation through verified email addresses. Despite assurances from organizers that false signatures are regularly removed, independent verification of these claims is not feasible. Kavčič further noted that the petition’s rapid deployment and apparent lack of technical safeguards suggest it was not intended as a conventional political campaign, but rather as a calculated effort to undermine an individual. He described the initiative as a “politically or activist-driven maneuver” aimed at discrediting a specific person, though he emphasized that the exact motivations behind the project remain unclear. The petition has also drawn significant media attention, with both national and commercial television stations dedicating substantial coverage to the issue. During one evening’s broadcast, both channels featured the same guest in their prime time slots, highlighting the public interest in the controversy. Kavčič expressed skepticism regarding this level of media focus, suggesting it reflects broader issues within Slovenia’s media landscape. In response to the petition, influential figure Aleksandar Repić launched a counter-petition on his own website. Kavčič assessed that Repić’s platform is technically more robust than Brejc’s, as it requires electronic confirmation via email and includes protections against automated bots. These features, he argued, make Repić’s initiative significantly more credible than the original petition. As the situation continues to evolve, the accessibility of the original petition remains uncertain, while the legitimacy of its supporters remains under scrutiny. Meanwhile, the emergence of a competing petition underscores the polarized nature of the debate surrounding the issue. With no immediate resolution in sight, the outcome of these developments will likely depend on the effectiveness of technical measures and the transparency of the processes involved.