'Anonymous Iran' takes over

In response to the stringent online censorship imposed by Iran, the internet group, "Anonymous" has created a forum that allows users to get around the bans and provide "a secure and reliable way of communication for Iranians and friends".

"Anonymous", a group notorious for organizing protests especially Project Chanology, a protest movement against the Church of Scientology has struck again, in Iran. Called the “Cyber Vigilante Group” by some, it has lashed out on the internet censorship in Iran. A forum named, “Why We Protest – Iran” has been set up by the group which is allowing users in Iran to bypass the internet censorship. The forum reportedly, “aims to be a secure and reliable way of communication for Iranians and friends.” It reads, “We are not a government agency, nor are we Iranian. We are simply the internet and we believe in free speech.” "Anonymous", a group of individuals with similar ideologies, has become quite a cult phenomenon on the web and using the 'incognito' factor, has impacted the society several times, usually targeting websites but also organizing peaceful protests, most notably, the anti-Scientology campaign which had protesters sporting “Guy Fawkes” masks inspired by the movie, V for Vendetta. Other targets include YouTube, Habbo and Hal Turner’s website. The forum is also backed by “The Pirate Bay”, the popular BitTorrent tracker which was recently in news for a copyright infringement case involving several major entertainment companies. "The Pirate Bay" has rebranded itself as “The Persian Bay” with a green logo in support for Iran and a banner saying, “Click here to help Iran”. This comes at a time when sites such as Twitter and YouTube have been shut-down and mobile phone calls and text messages blocked in Iran. The forum provides another way for the country’s internet users to express their views over Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s re-election and the ongoing clashes between opposition protesters and the police which have followed as a result, reports ninemsn.