Hackers Group Targets Croatian president's Home Page

Croatian President Ivo Josipovic's web site was temporarily unavailable on Thursday evening after the Anonymous hackers group said it would target the site because Josipovic has backed the controversial international Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement.

"Why? Because he supports ACTA," Anonymous declared on Facebook several days ago in explaining its decision to target Josipovic. The Croatian president has said that "it is absolutely intolerable just to steal from Internet".

Anonymous said on Friday that it would hack Josipovic's site again on Saturday from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m., when protests against ACTA are to be held in four Croatian cities.

The president's office confirmed that the web site had been hacked.

Josipovic, a musician and composer, voiced strong support for ACTA and condemned internet piracy in a recent statement.

"It's the same as if you come into a store, take some stuff and say: 'Look, this is nice, I'll take it, it's my human right to eat.' There's somebody's work behind human deeds, somebody's existence, somebody's investments, and it is absolutely intolerable just to steal from the internet. I think it is much more important to think about how to find a fair price for copyright," he said.

Josipovic was one of the main creators of ZAMP, the Croatian agency for the  protection of musicians' and authors' rights. The agency developed an efficient mechanism for charging and collecting royalties from businesses that use music such as broadcasters and cafes.