Press

Just like all other areas of life, the internet is a political space. Therefore, political decisions are made here every day. Time and again, we hear from people who were politicized by a simple online petition and realized that they can make a difference if they get involved.

This democratic mechanism cannot be limited to online petition platforms. We notice that such "niche topics" sensitize many people to areas they would never have been interested in before. We don't see anything wrong with this—quite the opposite: it's a democratic added value.

Time and again, the evolution of petitions refute the blanket criticism of click activism: by creating a petition, spreading the message, and organizing a network. Good petitions require more than just a click.

Data protection is very important to openPetition : We protect our users' data and allow everyone to decide for themselves what happens to their data and whether they want to be contacted. This happens before the person signs for the first time. A petition can also be signed if you know someone who has an email address and is allowed to use it. In some households, there is only one email address per family. Printable signature forms allow you to sign without providing your email address.

In our privacy policy, we transparently explain which data we store and how. Data is stored on servers in Germany. All data protection policies comply with German standards, all domains are encrypted with a security certificate (https), and upon request, all communication is conducted using PGP encryption (end-to-end).

Unlike other platforms, openPetition rarely sends recommendations for individual petitions. Instead, it sends newsletters and donation mailings. Anyone can adjust their notification settings at any time. Furthermore, petition initiators, representatives, and supporters receive automated emails based on the status of a petition, provided they have previously agreed to this.

Germany: Article 17 guarantees the right to petition as a fundamental right, without mentioning the word "petition" itself. It explicitly mentions the possibility of addressing the relevant authorities collectively. How the community connects before the petition is submitted is not specified. A common way for this today is through civil society's online collective petition platforms. These platforms do not replace petition committees; on the contrary, they create the technical prerequisites for collective petitions to be easily submitted collectively.

Our petitions span the entire political spectrum. We often receive criticism from multiple sides simultaneously, claiming that a petition should not be accepted because it contradicts or does not sufficiently align with their own ideology. openPetition does not embrace any ideology. We moderate debates and ensure respectful dialogue. On each individual petition page, pros and cons are presented side by side, on an equal footing. openPetition represents democratic values and defends our peaceful and free democratic constitutional order. We want to strengthen our democracy by encouraging political participation for all social groups and giving them equal voices.

openPetition calls for more public hearings for petitioners. Individual personal concerns are exempt from this demand. These will not be published on openPetition . Individual concerns of third parties will only be published on openPetition with the consent of the individuals concerned. This also applies to the submission of these petitions. Only with this consent for publication will we submit petitions and publish statements from the respective parliament.

To ensure signature verification, the signature must be confirmed via email to the specified email address. Because we do not want to exclude people who are not internet-savvy from political participation, up to five people from one household can sign the petition using the same email address. All additional signatures with the same address and email address will not be counted. Signatures from multiple email addresses with the same name and address will also not be counted.

Automated signatures from bots are excluded by a CAPTCHA that is activated on a case-by-case basis. Paper signatures are authenticated by the scanned signature sheet.

We detect mass abuse based on patterns in IP addresses, email addresses, cookies, and the chronological progression of signatures. If too many suspicious signatures are submitted within a certain period of time, our spam protection is automatically activated. Collecting signatures online is thus just as secure as collecting signatures on the street.

Forging signatures is a criminal offense (forgery of documents), which can even be prosecuted as attempted fraud. Any violation will be reported to the police by us or the petition initiator.

openPetition has high security standards. Requiring signatories to confirm their signatures via email makes it more difficult for malware to digitally forge petition signatures on a mass scale. Signatures are only permitted on openPetition if the signatory signs with their own name and official address. This security measure allows both petition initiators and recipients to rely on the number of supporters.

On average, a petition is successfully submitted to openPetition every other day. Online collective petitions generate public pressure, especially when many signatures are collected and the petition receives media attention. This opens up new avenues and initiates dialogue. Often, a request can be addressed before it goes through the official process of a petition committee or parliament. In addition, openPetition solicits comments from members of parliament to promote a transparent, equal dialogue.

Our platform is a tool for a vibrant democracy, and accordingly, many different viewpoints can be found here. Anyone, regardless of background or opinion, can use openPetition as a voice. Our only rule is compliance with our terms of use.

We help petitioners and their supporters every day, but we never adopt their views as our own. In our experience, the petitions that receive the most attention are those that strike a social nerve and have benefited from the high level of commitment of the petitioners and supporters.

The selection of supported petitions is based on the four-eyes principle and the level of commitment of the initiators.

The openPetition team is aware that the number of platforms and petitions is increasing. This increase demonstrates that people have concerns that require support. Free petition platforms complement government petitions. openPetition is constantly evolving. Only on openPetition can statements from members of parliament be requested, arguments be exchanged in a debate room, and signatures be collected online and offline. Statistics, comments, and petition updates make the process transparent and understandable for everyone.

The trend of more and more petitions being started online since digitalization highlights two things at once: On the one hand, more and more people are using online petitions as a tool for greater participation, and on the other hand, they are using their right to make requests and complaints, or the right to petition.

Through openPetition , concerns can be formulated, discussed, signed, and disseminated. Citizens can also initiate an initial dialogue with their representatives through statements before submitting a petition.

We cannot and do not want to decide whether a petition request will be granted or not. Quite the opposite: In our online guide, we provide information about the various submission processes and refer to the decision-making bodies at the municipal, state, federal, and EU levels.

Our terms of use clearly state: We do not accept advertising. Advertising includes not only commercial companies, but also political parties, associations, or foundations.

That may be partly true, but we accept that. A counter-question arises: What is relevant for whom? What is relevant for our neighbors? Those who start petitions and their supporters decide what important social issues they want to bring about change on.

Our editorial team will use warning bars to warn you if a petition fails to meet our quality standards. This happens when it falls into one of the following categories:

Single petition, duplicate, wrong recipient, factual allegation, or legal dispute. Details can be found in openPetition 's petition quality requirements.

Various discussions have revealed that petition platforms are often associated with direct democracy. This is a misconception. Petitions – online or offline – can pave the way for direct democratic engagement (e.g., citizens' initiatives), but they are not, in fact, a direct democratic participation tool.

openPetition believes that direct democracy and referendums are only useful under certain conditions. It is especially important that there is a broad debate before a vote. Direct democracy only leads to better decisions when people can form a well-founded opinion on an issue.

openPetition 's work is always guided by our values—which include, above all, transparency and neutrality. This naturally also applies to the financial aspects of our work.

We understand that the financing model of a petition platform that provides virtually all of its features free of charge raises some questions: Where does the money come from to operate the platform and support staff, for example? Are there any hidden costs? Are there other organizations behind openPetition that want to use their money to support specific political causes?

Therefore, we do not wish to conceal our financial situation, but publish not only information about openPetition 's working practices but also our income and expenses on our transparency page. In short: openPetition is financed through small donations from our users. We are not financially dependent on other (political) organizations. We are a non-profit organization. Unlike traditional companies, we are not permitted to distribute profits. We are obligated to reinvest all income in our statutory goals. To ensure this remains the case, we are organized as steward-owned companies: a reversal of our values and a focus on profit maximization is therefore impossible.