Anonymous is an organization famous for its disorganization with no leaders or power structure. When it comes to helping those who are down, an outsider might expect that anons who fall behind are left behind. But when an anon is apprehended by the government for cybercrime, a support network springs up around him or her, thanks to the orchestrations of a subset of Anonymous called FreeAnons, the "Anonymous Solidarity Network." Members of FreeAnons help arrested anons in various ways, from sending them care packages while they're in jail to sending a volunteer to court to monitor their case.

The front-facing part of the FreeAnons networks consists of several sites dedicated to raising money for arrested or imprisoned anons like Topiary or Mercedes, as well as a general fund for smaller cases. The general fund, which has been accepting money since October, has collected only $3,780.88—a paltry sum considering the number of cases multiplied by the cost of bail and lawyers' fees (that amount represents "the majority of collected funds," Nancy Norelli, a Florida lawyer and the public face of FreeAnons told Ars). Norelli and Barton, an anonymous FreeAnons member (nick changed to protect the anon), told Ars that no one does much to promote the funds and solicit donations outside of the AnonOps IRC or a session on Radio AnonOps—the nature of the support cast doesn't exactly lend itself to a high-profile charity ball.

But time is a more frequent donation than money. Barton laid out a hypothetical case: "An anon gets into trouble and is arrested. We would gather information that would aid in their defense, might help them find an attorney. Work with said attorney in their fact gathering, [collecting] relevant information or evidence if needed, send our persecuted anon a care package, perhaps help them improve their quality of life by adding to their prison fund."

Norelli and Barton went on to explain that while "the government wants [the anon] to feel alone… we stand with our brothers all the way." FreeAnons has "a number of tools" to help them do all these things while remaining anonymous, Barton said. Having a public and authorized proxy like Norelli helps.

In addition to helping with fact-finding and legal cases, FreeAnons also keeps in contact with an arrested anon's friends and family. When the anon has court hearings, FreeAnons will send a volunteer to each one to provide "real-time reporting of what is happening" to AnonOps' IRC, someone who is either "public or willing to take a risk." Barton said the volunteer anon uses a "discreet" tool (presumably a cell phone) that sends updates via SMS.

Given the faceless, structureless sea that is Anonymous, it may be surprising to learn that outed members aren't tossed overboard and forgotten, that anyone might care about anyone else. "We are the public library… the Red Cross," Barton said. "There are those who would see a new weak spot and try to cut it out, but when you look at the totality of our missions, we are glue that helps bind everyone together in certain ways."

Of course, there may be a measure of self-defense to this approach: if compromised anons keep receiving support from their fellow anons, complete cooperation and submission to the government doesn't seem like the only option.

Norelli and Barton pointed out that the support network is fairly large. An educational bot on some of AnonOps' IRC channels delivers a tutorial on laws regarding computer activity, how to stay anonymous on the Internet, and similar lessons (educating anons on how to be anons is one of FreeAnons' four core aims). The bot has been run an average of 36 times every day in the last year, for a total of over 13,000 possible individuals educated in the ways of FreeAnons.

Even upon conviction, an anon lost to the legal system is not lost forever. When asked whether anons who have been compromised are welcomed back, Norelli and Barton said that it's not impossible for them to regain anonymity. "We see nicks here we know have had contact with law enforcement," said Norelli.

Barton adds, "becoming anonymous is something that can be reestablished… the Internet and technology are more our world than it is theirs. This is a place where, ultimately, ideology speaks louder than stated affinity… All people have value."

It must be the ideology ("freedom" and "liberty" were often repeated) keeping the FreeAnons network together; it's certainly not the funding. Norelli expressed more fondness for good sentiments than cash: "lots of people send in a $5 donation and a note, and those are awesome… the notes are really touching."