Texas Abortion Website Is Down Again After Onslaught Of Fake Reports

The Texas Right to Life group's abortion 'whistleblower' website is down again, this time redirecting to the group's website. This is the second time the website's tips platform has been shut down, each amid an onslaught of fake reports from all over the country. The website will return, the group claims, but the timeline for this return hasn't been revealed.

The so-called 'whistleblower' website allows individuals around the US to submit reports about suspected abortions that violate Texas's new restrictive abortion laws. The website allows anyone inside or outside of Texas to submit their reports, opening the door to expensive lawsuits and false allegations.

Many rallied to overload the website with fake tips to drown out any authentic ones, including going so far as to set up bots to spam the services. Amid all of this, the website's former registrar GoDaddy hit Texas Right to Life with a 24-hour notice that it had to find a new home. The website briefly went dark during this switch.

When it returned, many users were given error messages or warnings that they'd been blocked — either permanently due to using a VPN or temporarily to reduce fake reports. This changed once again over the holiday weekend; the website now redirects users to the Texas Right to Life website instead of its tips submission form.

The group said in a statement to CBS that the website is redirecting users so that "extra security protocols" can be implemented. Texas Right to Life says it plans to bring back the tips website 'soon,' though the representative didn't elaborate on the security measures that will be implemented.