Tbilisi club target of cyber attack after launching "Russian visa"

Tbilisi's Dedaena Bar was the target of a mass cyber attack last week after the club launched a "Russian visa form" on their website in an effort to deter Putin supporters from entering the venue, report RA.

“Citizens Of Russia Need A Visa To Enter Dedaena Bar Because Not All Russians Are Welcome,” reads the visa form. “We Stand For Equality And Unity, But We Need To Make Sure, That Brainwashed Russian Imperialists Do Not End Up In Our Bar.”

“Please Support Us By Filling Up A Visa Application, So Nobody Has To Hang Out Alongside Ass*Oles. Thanks For Understanding,” it reads. Around 2,000 Russians reportedly filled out the form.

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Following the form's launch, the Tblisi-based club fell victim to a slew of hate online, starting on August 4. According to RA, the club faced thousands of negative reviews online, and threats through private messages and Instagram comments.

“Google reviews suddenly went up to 10,500. On the first two days we were receiving on average one review or comment per second,” the venue’s co-founder, Data Lapauri, told Resident Advisor.

He added: “Our website has been down 20 times too. At the moment, you can't see our menu, they deleted it.”

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The visa form was posted on the venue’s website at the beginning of August asking Russian citizens to tick specific boxes relating to them. The political takes range from: “I didn’t vote for Putin, he is a dictator”, to: “20% of Georgia is occupied by Russia”.

Speaking to RA, Lapauri said: ”Everyone is welcome in our bar, our whole policy is about inclusivity. Our staff are from diverse backgrounds. We wouldn't say 'you are Russian, you can't be here’.

“But we really need to know people who come to the bar aren't supporting imperialist mindsets of Putin supporters, so we created this form,” he said.

“We’re just a music venue for people to hang out, connect, have a good time, then all of a sudden we're getting attacked by these trolls who see us as the enemy and threaten to bomb our bar. It's something so surreal and unbelievable for us.”

[Via Resident Advisor]

Gemma Ross is Mixmag's Editorial Assistant, follow her on Twitter