"Catastrophe" for Russia: SpaceX deactivates unauthorized Starlink antennas
Barely a week after Ukraine warned that Russia was using Starlink for drone attacks, countermeasures are showing their effect. And what an effect.
(Image: Oleh Dubyna/Shutterstock.com)
New security measures by SpaceX have apparently led to a mass failure of Starlink antennas used by the Russian military at the front in the Ukraine war. This is reported by, among others, the Kyiv Independent, citing posts on social networks. A Ukrainian expert in electronic warfare has already stated, “the enemy has no problem at the fronts, it is a catastrophe.” While other Ukrainian sources have also reported that Russian troops have apparently been largely cut off from communication, they are likely now seeking alternatives. At the same time, Ukrainian military personnel have admitted that Russian attacks have not been stopped by the measure but at most slowed down.
Cut off from satellite internet since Wednesday
Even if the full extent of the measures is not yet foreseeable, the reports made it clear how quickly Ukraine, thanks to SpaceX, has managed to take away a key technology from the Russian military. Just over a week ago, Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov drew attention to the fact that Russia has equipped attack drones with Starlink antennas to control them remotely. There was already talk of solutions, and even though Elon Musk reacted rudely to criticism, his company was not idle afterward. At the beginning of the week, it was then said that initial countermeasures had taken effect. However, the extent of the success can only be estimated now.
The most important measure is likely to be a restriction of Starlink to authorized antennas; users in Ukraine now have to verify themselves. This path is blocked for the Russian military, and with the blocking of unauthorized antennas, they no longer function. It is unclear how many antennas are affected, but it is clear that Russia has not only used the technology for remote control of drones. According to a source from the news agency Reuters, the antennas ceased to function on Wednesday evening, around which time Lauren Dreyer from SpaceX shared the Ukrainian government's instructions for registration on X.
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The development once again highlights the enormous strategic value that satellite internet has long had in the bloody war. Starlink has long replaced a large part of the communication infrastructure in Ukraine that was destroyed by the fighting. Not only the country's troops rely on the technology functioning, but also hospitals, schools, and other institutions communicate via it. In total, Ukraine has received more than 50,000 of the necessary antennas, the majority of which were provided by Poland. Meanwhile, Elon Musk had cast doubt on its reliability, but that has long been overcome.
(mho)
