Child murderer Brett Cowan has been allowed to use his legal name in prison, in an attempt to protect himself after he was attacked by an inmate who allegedly tipped boiling water on his head and beat him.

Cowan was released from hospital following the attack and sent back inside a prison unit with other inmates at the Wolston Correctional Centre.

View photos Brett Peter Cowan has been given permission to use his legal name Shaddo N-unyah Hunter. Photo: Supplied More

The man convicted of the murder of schoolboy Daniel Morcombe, legally changed his name to Shaddo N-unyah Hunter in 2013, before his arrest.

Cowan's prison identification card and the Integrated Offender Management System have both been changed, The Courier Mail reports.

He told police Shaddo was the name of his dog and "Nunyah" stood for "none of your business".

Cowan was sentenced to life in prison in 2014 after Morcombe's murder.

View photos Cowan was sentenced to life in prison in 2014 following the murder of Daniel Morcombe. More





It is believed Cowan changed his name in Western Australia a few years after he became a suspect in the schoolboy's disappearance.

Last month, the child murderer was considered the maximum security prison's "number one target", as inmates reportedly employed a "kill him or be killed" mentality.

One inmate allegedly screamed "this is for Daniel" before he poured boiling hot water over the convicted killer's head.

Cowan was rushed to hospital suffering severe burns to his face, head, back, chest and thighs and has now reportedly been left disfigured.

View photos Cowan has been left 'permanently disfigured' after the attack. Photo: Supplied More

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