After being banned by the newly-formed Google+ social networking platform, hacking group Anonymous have apparently established their own social media hub. The group rose to infamy last year with in support of the controversial whistle-blower website WikiLeaks. (Source: google.com)

Rejected Hackers Start AnonPlus

It's reported that developers from Anonymous attempted to build a profile on Google+, the search giant's new social networking platform. Their profile was later suspended, which then lead the group to build their own, similar service, called AnonPlus. (Source: pcworld.com)

At the time of writing, AnonPlus is still in development stages, consisting of a placeholder page.

AnonPlus to Censor Censorship

The most striking feature of AnonPlus, however, isn't the design -- it's the site's pledge to avoid censorship of all kinds and at all costs.

"This is one social network that will not tolerate being shut down, censored, or oppressed -- even in the face of blackout," the group says. (Source: informationweek.com)

Blogging about the issue is Katherine Noyes, a PCWorld columnist. "It seems a fairly safe bet that AnonPlus won't be a serious competitor to Facebook and Google+, at least not for mainstream users in the near future," she says. "The whole point of most social networking is to keep in touch with those who know who you are; anonymity would defeat much of that purpose." (Source: pcworld.com)

It's still not clear if Anonymous is behind the entire project. Hacker blog darknet.org.uk rightly pointed out that the group hadn't made any mention of AnonPlus on its Twitter feed or through its official blog. (Source: informationweek.com)