為什麼黑客普遍喜歡在網路上使用看似亂碼的文字作為名字？

他們為什麼喜歡使用這種名字？

如何理解這種名字？

這種名字有什麼由來？

如何給自己取一個這樣的名字？

Leet[1] 是歐美網路文化的一部分，本質上就是用其他形狀相似的符號替代英文字母，比如：

A : 4

K : |&<

Z : 2

另外也常用 X 替代 K，Z 來替代 S，比如 wares 寫為 warez，hacker 寫為 h4x3r。類似於中文火星文，它發源於早期的 BBS，維基百科說得很清楚：

Leet originated within bulletin board systems (BBS) in the 1980s,[1][2] where having "elite" status on a BBS allowed a user access to file folders, games, and special chat rooms. One theory is that it was developed to defeat text filters created by BBS or Internet Relay Chat system operators for message boards to discourage the discussion of forbidden topics, like cracking and hacking.[1] Creative misspellings and ASCII-art-derived words were also a way to attempt to indicate one was knowledgeable about the culture of computer users. Once the reserve of hackers, crackers, and script kiddies, leet has since entered the mainstream.[1] It is now also used to mock newbies, or newcomers, on web sites, or in gaming communities.[3] Some consider emoticons and ASCII art, like smiley faces, to be leet, while others maintain that leet consists of only symbolic word encryption. More obscure forms of leet, involving the use of symbol combinations and almost no letters or numbers, continue to be used for its original purpose of encrypted communication. It is also sometimes used as a script language. Variants of leet have been used for censorship purposes for many years; for instance "@$$"[Notes 1] and "$#!+"[Notes 2] are frequently seen to make a word appear censored to the untrained eye but obvious to a person familiar with leet.

Leet symbols, especially the number 1337, are Internet memes that have spilled over into popular culture. Signs that show the numbers "1337" are popular motives for pictures and shared widely across the internet.

文中 @$$ = ass, $#!t = shit。

而 leet 也常轉寫為 l33t、L337 或者 1337。你可以理解為，用這種轉寫方法來寫名字，就如同中文火星文一樣，是一種身份識別機制，看得懂的人會心一笑，看不懂的人摸不到頭腦——甚至感到反感和厭惡。

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leet