Who or what is the hacktivist group Anonymous?

Anonymous is an amorphous group of hacker activists who have inserted themselves into several conflicts worldwide, including actions in Israel, the United States and Europe.

There is no one Anonymous group but rather several individuals and groups that make statements and take action under the broad umbrella of the name.

Their YouTube videos often include a stylized image of a black and white suit with a question mark where the head should be. The voiceovers are done using computer software, giving them an eerie, and untracable, tone.

Anonymous actions frequently include hacking into and disseminating information that purportedly belongs to people in power, in order to discredit or embarrass them. In November of 2015, for example, the group released names and email addresses of people it said were members of the racist hate group the Ku Klux Klan.

They often use the tag line, "We are Anonymous. We are Legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. Expect us."

GUY FAWKES IMAGE

In public protests, those representing themselves as Anonymous often wear Guy Fawkes masks. Fawkes was an English Catholic who participated in a plot to overthrow King James I and put a Catholic back on the English throne in 1605. The plot failed and Fawkes was condemned to death.

In recent years, Fawkes has been taken up as an icon by some anarchist groups, in part because of the use of a Guy Fawkes mask by the central character in the graphic novel "V for Vendetta" by Alan Moore and the subsequent movie.

In general, the decentralized collection of Internet savvy activists believe in freedom and and end to censorship. It supported the Occupy movement in the United States and has been active in issues surrounding the shooting of Michael Brown in the Ferguson, Mo. in 2014.