Shadowy hacker-activist collective Anonymous could be planning something big for today, if their Twitter account is any indication.
Remember, remember the fifth of November.
— Anonymous (@YourAnonNews) November 5, 2013
November 5 first became a day of infamy back in 1605 when a group of English Catholics attempted to assassinate King James of England, a Protestant. The plot failed, of course, and the following year November 5 was deemed an official day of commemoration, eventually earning the name Guy Fawkes Day. Fawkes was not the ringleader, but he was the man holding the explosives. In 1982, writer Alan Moore and illustrator David Lloyd created the look for the Guy Fawkes mask in the comic V for Vendetta, which was further popularized in the 2006 movie of the same name. Since then, the mask has become a symbol of anonymity, and has been wholly embraced by Anonymous.
The group has also adopted November 5 as rallying call, and Anonymous has a history of conducting operations and protests on November 5. Anonymous-branded protests have started in multiple places according to the official Anonymous Twitter feed, though the size and scope of these protests is unknown.
Earlier this year, Anonymous threatened to attack the Singapore government on November 5 in the event that they failed to roll back regulations imposed on media publications earlier this year. Starting on June 1, Singapore’s government “required websites that regularly publish news on the city state to be licensed and pay a S$50,000 (U.S.$40,200) bond, to be forfeited on the publication of “prohibited content” that “undermines racial or religious harmony,” according to Bloomberg.
In the YouTube video below, Anonymous stated that “We demand you reconsider the regulations of your framework or we will be forced to go to war with you.” The voice went on to say that “For every time you deprive a citizen his right to information, we will cost you financial loss by aggressive cyber intrusion.” Towards the video’s conclusion, the voice issued an eerie warning, uttering the phrase “Remember the 5th of November.”
With all of that in mind, will Anonymous do something big today? There’s only one way to find out. Stay tuned.