I think the GN crew appeal to a specific subset of technically proficient, pragmatic people who won't believe bullshit but are otherwise mostly just chill, and Steve is widely thought of as one of the last 'good ones' out there in a scene taking a rapid turn towards the dystopic.

There will be a lot of people who won't believe for a second if Steve drops any time soon. And say what you will about Luigi's motivations, his education and means did seem to help make his planning and execution good enough to be a threat to even powerful individuals. I think radicalizing even a small portion of that large group of intelligent individuals with enough money to buy expensive equipment to believe that you are evil beyond a doubt might be just scary enough to keep him safe.