In 2011 Anonymous hackers in Latin American threatened torelease information on members Zeta cartel, but backed off after the cartel threatened to track them down. Now the cell has launched a campaign against the Mexican government, in support of a rebel group.

The hacker collective says it stole files from Mexico’s Secretariat of National Defense (SEDENA) and took down several government Web sites to show its solidarity with the Zapatista National Liberation Army (EZLN). The SEDENA site was replaced with the EZLN manifesto for two hours.

Anonymous has threatened to publish the files online. However, the Mexican government says no systems were ever compromised or information breached. The Navy only acknowledged its Web sites subject to a temporary DDoS attack.

“Although this is not the first time Anonymous activists have attacked government targets in Mexico, previously bringing down a mining ministry-affiliated website, the decision to take on government security institutions could represent a change of focus for the group,” according toanalysis by Insight Crime, a research organization that focuses on organized crime in Latin America. “However, as Anonymous is an amorphous collective with no official leadership or hierarchy, it could also be a decision taken by one faction acting in isolation.”

Around 60,000 people have died from cartel violence in Mexico, including 67 reporters, 3,500 police officers, and more than 1,000 children.

photo byEneas/flickr