Bistel

Bistel - Belgian Information System by Telephone

Developer	Belgian Government
Type	Videotex
Launch date	1986(1986)

Bistel,acronym forBelgian Information System by Telephone,was aBelgianservice using theVideotexprotocol, established in 1986 at the initiative of the then Prime MinisterWilfried Martens.

It was afederal governmentservice that gave access throughvideotextoBelgatelexnews releases, to a press review, judicial databasesJUSTELandCREDOC,economical databasesECOTELandBUDGETEX.

In 1988, Bart Halewijck, a former PM cabinet adviser andmunicipal councillorfor the sameCVPparty inGistel,used the passwords he had kept to view sensitive government informations and showed it to a friend, then to a journalist fromDe Standaardto prove the security failures. This led to a judiciary "Bistel Case". In spite of recommendations, all passwords had not been changed every six months and many were still the same after two years. Halewijck and his friend, as there was then no specific penal provisions for such crimes, were charged for forgery and use of forgery, theft of energy with burglary, forgery by an official of a telegraphic despatch (an article of the BelgianPenal Codenever used since 1911) and destruction of State property.The two first ever "Belgianhackers"got only light penalties but the case showed the urgent need for a specific legislation.