Iranian democracy activists, meet your new pals: a masked protest movement best known for needling the Church of Scientology, and a group of file-sharers so infamous they're facing a year in jail.

Anonymous Iran is a collaboration between The Pirate Bay – operators of the world's largest torrent site, convicted in April of copyright infringement – and Anonymous, the prankster collective dedicated to exposing "Scientology's crimes."

The new site offers tips on how to navigate online in private, upload files through the Iranian firewall, find the best activist Tweeters, and launch attacks on pro-government websites.

This week, The Pirate Bay launched its virtual private network service that promises to mask users' indentities online. More than 180,000 people have already signed up. Earlier this month, Sweden's Pirate Party won a seat in the European Union Parliament, after outrage about the file-sharers conviction erupted.

*[Active: Linkfilter; *Photo: Jim Merithew/Wired.com]

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