In the United States in the early 1990s, a “Hacker War” began between two hacker clubhouses: the Legion of Doom (LoD), started by Lex Luthor in 1984, and the Masters of Deception (MoD), started by Phiber Optik. The LoD (whose name was borrowed from a Saturday morning cartoon) had the reputation of being able to attract the most talented of hackers to its fold. That is, of course, until one of the club’s brightest, Phiber Optik, began a feud with Erik Bloodaxe (a.k.a. Chris Coggins)—an editor of Phrack. As a result, Phiber Optik was removed from the club. So, he and his friends formed a rival club, MoD.

For about two years, LoD and MoD engaged in online warfare. They would jam telephone lines, monitor each other’s telephone calls, and crack into each others’ computers. Eventually, the United States federal agents moved in with “Operation Sunevil” and “Crackdown Redux.” Phiber Optik and four members of MoD were arrested, and Phiber Optik wound up with a one-year jail sentence. After his release from federal prison, several hundred admirers attended a welcome-home party in Phiber Optik’s honor at a swanky club in Manhattan. Not long after this event, a popular magazine dubbed Phiber Optik—whose real identity is Mark Abene—one of the city’s smartest people.

See Also: Abene, Mark (a.k.a. Phiber Optik); Hacker Club; Legion of Doom (LoD); Masters of Deception (MoD); Phrack.