Musk is a very confused, ruthless, powerful, smart person.
**TRUST BUT VERIFY!**
Always.
Dont stop Russians using starlink! Spy on them!
*Ukraine is working with SpaceX to stop Russian soldiers using Starlink, a Ukrainian minister said.
*SpaceX — and its founder Elon Musk — had disputed that Russia had access to Starlink at all.
*Ukraine now says SpaceX has conceded that it is happening, and is working on ways to deny access.
Ukraine said Monday that it’s working with Elon Musk’s SpaceX to stop Russia using Starlink terminals in its war.
The development — described by a Ukrainian minister giving a TV interview — followed a public fight over whether Russia had access to the technology at all.
Musk had previously asserted that Russia wasn’t using Starlink internet in its invasion, which Ukraine repeatedly denied.
Starlink has been a major help to Ukrainian forces, allowing them to communicate in war-torn territories and easily operate technology like its drone fleet.
Russia was not supposed to enjoy the same advantage, but Ukraine said it was acquiring the terminals and putting them to use in the parts of eastern Ukraine occupied by its forces.
In a Monday interview with the Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne, Ukraine’s minister for digital transformation said his officials had offered a solution.
“We found an algorithm and proposed it to SpaceX and we are now communicating with them to ensure that such cases do not occur,” said the minister, Mikhailo Fedorov.
“SpaceX has done something similar with the Israeli government,” he added, a reference to a deal struck over the use of Starlink in Gaza. Fedorov said that simply turning Starlink off in occupied territories wasn’t an option as Ukraine still needs its drones to be able to use the technology in these areas.
“There are other ways to make sure our Starlinks work and others don’t. We are working with SpaceX on this,” he said. Earlier this month, Ukraine’s spy chief, Kyrylo Budanov, told The Wall Street Journal that Russia was using thousands of Starlink terminals bought on the “open market”.
It was using private companies to disguise the purpose of the purchases, Budanov said, then shipping them to Russia through other countries.
Elon Musk has consistently denied that Russians are using Starlink.
“This is categorically false. To the best of our knowledge, no Starlinks have been sold directly or indirectly to Russia,” he previously wrote on X.
His comments focused on the possibility of Starlink being used in Russia itself, rather than in Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine.
SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, sent outside regular working hours.
Musk has been an ambivalent figure in the war. He was praised by Ukrainians for providing Starlink access to the military in the early months of the conflict but has also been receptive to Russia’s point of view.
He infamously cut off Starlink access during a high-stakes Ukrainian attack on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, causing the attack to fail.
Last week, he urged Republican lawmakers to vote against more funding for Ukraine, saying “there is no way in hell” that Russia would lose the war.
Fedorov said he didn’t think there was “any connection” between Russia’s acquisition of Starlink terminals and Musk’s own views.
“It was only logical that the Russians would start purchasing them through third countries,” he said.
“They had Starlinks, but now there are a few more of them. Someone, perhaps a Russian entrepreneur, has begun to monetize it.”
“For me the survival of our soldiers is more important than concerning myself with Musk’s statements.”
It is better to just hand the GPS positions in the meantime; most likely, the Starlink terminals are close to regional commanders. Wouldn’t it be a shame if something happened to them and their terminal.
“Try”
I don’t know what Putin has on Elon, but I suspect it is Epstein level stuff. US government should step in and nationalize Star link until war is over.
Why would you want to stop the Russians from sending their data over our network and giving away their positions as well?
Anything the Ketamine Warrior says, should be considered bullshit until proven otherwise.
Seize his assets and deport Space Karen Elmo Muskrat
I’m all for a good Elon bashing, but to my knowledge he has never denied that Russians used Starlink, he denied that SpaceX sold units to Russia.
And for all i’m aware, that’s still true. SpaceX never sold the units to Russia, but Russia bought them through a third-party (most likely UAE by reports).
Musk is not an ally, he is an opportunist.
Musk sometimes has the right ideas and sometimes he is just a bog standard coward.
Musk is a musky liar. 🤥
All Starlink ground equipment should have an AirTag and self-destruct feature.
Yes, the current situation of a company with US DoD contracts not trying to limit the use of technology by an adversarial sanctioned state whose political leadership merely days ago was threatening once again to end the lives of millions of Europeans in a nuclear attack was a little weird.
That said, if they just try geofencing again there is a front line implication to Ukrainians.
Musk should be investigated by the DOD. This is definitely a case where a CEO should have their company taken away especially when they deal directly with the US government in defense.
“Try” ?
Seems it was a simple task to turn it off for Ukrainians..
Sounds like there’s several economic blocs putting the hard word on Starlink. Sanctions can be applied to any company assisting Russia and doing nothing to restrict reselling is not a defence.
So SpaceX is going to stop doing what Elmo says they don’t do?
Doesn’t smell right. Starlink’s admin stuff is region-based; I’m pretty sure specific transponders have to be affirmatively enabled to work in specific regions.
In July 2023 Russians were on r/Starlink asking how to use or hook up starlink dishes. Looks like they got an answer.
Yeah…he’s going to say that and go back on it. You would be wise not to place any trust in him.
Musk is an oligarch. Just like all the other billionaires they do not give a single thought or crap about freedom or democracy. They welcome fascism with open arms.
Musk is a egomaniac
Wdym “try” all I need to do is get myself a starlink terminal and I could get internet anywhere in the world?
I know the Russians will have some savvy hackers they can hire to get it done, but this seems to me like a fundamental thing, that SpaceX should be capable of denying and granting access to specific terminals, with 100% reliability.
I don’t know how SpaceX works, but presumably, I could just go to any country, activate my SpaceX terminal, and then travel to any other country.
So, the terminal, I would imagine, needs to be activated in the place you intend to use it, and it would have some sort of tag that allows it to be used in that area, and of you take it elsewhere, you would need to pay to use it there, or it won’t work.
You keep asking me questions as though I work at SpaceX, I don’t, but for the people constructing the company, these are problems that seem to me very simple to overcome, and also fundamental abilities for the business model.
You said yourself, there are sanctions in Russia. So, like if SpaceX sees terminals working in Russia, that’s a red flag.
In Ukraine, only certain accounts should be allowed to use, or some method of assuring the activation is Ukrainian.
This seems like it should be simple for the company to do. Like it would be a fundamental thing the company should have worked out.
How do they do it? I don’t know, I don’t work there. You asking “how will they do that?” Is a pointless question, because I don’t work there.
If you can say “they can’t do that, because of limitation x” now you’re being constructive.
There are any number of ways they could control who is using starlink in a specific geographical area.
Every terminal needs to be activated. All you need is a way to know the activation is coming from Ukrainian forces. That would be trivial. Some passcode, or something like that. Or just a handful of credit cards, which are Ukrainian defense cards, and only those accounts can work in Ukraine. I mean, there are many possible solutions.
When did he deny they were using it?
We all know better.
Strange trait of the fascists. Both support it, and deny it. If you really think this is the morally right thing to do, why not publicly defend it?
Title is incorrect. He denied it was being used in Russia and that maintains to be the case. It has never been usable in Russia.
31 comments
Musk is a very confused, ruthless, powerful, smart person.
**TRUST BUT VERIFY!**
Always.
Dont stop Russians using starlink! Spy on them!
*Ukraine is working with SpaceX to stop Russian soldiers using Starlink, a Ukrainian minister said.
*SpaceX — and its founder Elon Musk — had disputed that Russia had access to Starlink at all.
*Ukraine now says SpaceX has conceded that it is happening, and is working on ways to deny access.
Ukraine said Monday that it’s working with Elon Musk’s SpaceX to stop Russia using Starlink terminals in its war.
The development — described by a Ukrainian minister giving a TV interview — followed a public fight over whether Russia had access to the technology at all.
Musk had previously asserted that Russia wasn’t using Starlink internet in its invasion, which Ukraine repeatedly denied.
Starlink has been a major help to Ukrainian forces, allowing them to communicate in war-torn territories and easily operate technology like its drone fleet.
Russia was not supposed to enjoy the same advantage, but Ukraine said it was acquiring the terminals and putting them to use in the parts of eastern Ukraine occupied by its forces.
In a Monday interview with the Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne, Ukraine’s minister for digital transformation said his officials had offered a solution.
“We found an algorithm and proposed it to SpaceX and we are now communicating with them to ensure that such cases do not occur,” said the minister, Mikhailo Fedorov.
“SpaceX has done something similar with the Israeli government,” he added, a reference to a deal struck over the use of Starlink in Gaza. Fedorov said that simply turning Starlink off in occupied territories wasn’t an option as Ukraine still needs its drones to be able to use the technology in these areas.
“There are other ways to make sure our Starlinks work and others don’t. We are working with SpaceX on this,” he said. Earlier this month, Ukraine’s spy chief, Kyrylo Budanov, told The Wall Street Journal that Russia was using thousands of Starlink terminals bought on the “open market”.
It was using private companies to disguise the purpose of the purchases, Budanov said, then shipping them to Russia through other countries.
Elon Musk has consistently denied that Russians are using Starlink.
“This is categorically false. To the best of our knowledge, no Starlinks have been sold directly or indirectly to Russia,” he previously wrote on X.
His comments focused on the possibility of Starlink being used in Russia itself, rather than in Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine.
SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, sent outside regular working hours.
Musk has been an ambivalent figure in the war. He was praised by Ukrainians for providing Starlink access to the military in the early months of the conflict but has also been receptive to Russia’s point of view.
He infamously cut off Starlink access during a high-stakes Ukrainian attack on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, causing the attack to fail.
Last week, he urged Republican lawmakers to vote against more funding for Ukraine, saying “there is no way in hell” that Russia would lose the war.
Fedorov said he didn’t think there was “any connection” between Russia’s acquisition of Starlink terminals and Musk’s own views.
“It was only logical that the Russians would start purchasing them through third countries,” he said.
“They had Starlinks, but now there are a few more of them. Someone, perhaps a Russian entrepreneur, has begun to monetize it.”
“For me the survival of our soldiers is more important than concerning myself with Musk’s statements.”
Read the original article on [Business Insider](https://www.businessinsider.com/ukraine-spacex-trying-to-stop-russia-using-starlink-2024-2?r=US&IR=T)
Musk eats his words again.
It is better to just hand the GPS positions in the meantime; most likely, the Starlink terminals are close to regional commanders. Wouldn’t it be a shame if something happened to them and their terminal.
“Try”
I don’t know what Putin has on Elon, but I suspect it is Epstein level stuff. US government should step in and nationalize Star link until war is over.
Why would you want to stop the Russians from sending their data over our network and giving away their positions as well?
Anything the Ketamine Warrior says, should be considered bullshit until proven otherwise.
Seize his assets and deport Space Karen Elmo Muskrat
I’m all for a good Elon bashing, but to my knowledge he has never denied that Russians used Starlink, he denied that SpaceX sold units to Russia.
And for all i’m aware, that’s still true. SpaceX never sold the units to Russia, but Russia bought them through a third-party (most likely UAE by reports).
Musk is not an ally, he is an opportunist.
Musk sometimes has the right ideas and sometimes he is just a bog standard coward.
Musk is a musky liar. 🤥
All Starlink ground equipment should have an AirTag and self-destruct feature.
Yes, the current situation of a company with US DoD contracts not trying to limit the use of technology by an adversarial sanctioned state whose political leadership merely days ago was threatening once again to end the lives of millions of Europeans in a nuclear attack was a little weird.
That said, if they just try geofencing again there is a front line implication to Ukrainians.
Musk should be investigated by the DOD. This is definitely a case where a CEO should have their company taken away especially when they deal directly with the US government in defense.
“Try” ?
Seems it was a simple task to turn it off for Ukrainians..
Sounds like there’s several economic blocs putting the hard word on Starlink. Sanctions can be applied to any company assisting Russia and doing nothing to restrict reselling is not a defence.
So SpaceX is going to stop doing what Elmo says they don’t do?
Doesn’t smell right. Starlink’s admin stuff is region-based; I’m pretty sure specific transponders have to be affirmatively enabled to work in specific regions.
In July 2023 Russians were on r/Starlink asking how to use or hook up starlink dishes. Looks like they got an answer.
Yeah…he’s going to say that and go back on it. You would be wise not to place any trust in him.
Musk is an oligarch. Just like all the other billionaires they do not give a single thought or crap about freedom or democracy. They welcome fascism with open arms.
Musk is a egomaniac
Wdym “try” all I need to do is get myself a starlink terminal and I could get internet anywhere in the world?
I know the Russians will have some savvy hackers they can hire to get it done, but this seems to me like a fundamental thing, that SpaceX should be capable of denying and granting access to specific terminals, with 100% reliability.
I don’t know how SpaceX works, but presumably, I could just go to any country, activate my SpaceX terminal, and then travel to any other country.
So, the terminal, I would imagine, needs to be activated in the place you intend to use it, and it would have some sort of tag that allows it to be used in that area, and of you take it elsewhere, you would need to pay to use it there, or it won’t work.
You keep asking me questions as though I work at SpaceX, I don’t, but for the people constructing the company, these are problems that seem to me very simple to overcome, and also fundamental abilities for the business model.
You said yourself, there are sanctions in Russia. So, like if SpaceX sees terminals working in Russia, that’s a red flag.
In Ukraine, only certain accounts should be allowed to use, or some method of assuring the activation is Ukrainian.
This seems like it should be simple for the company to do. Like it would be a fundamental thing the company should have worked out.
How do they do it? I don’t know, I don’t work there. You asking “how will they do that?” Is a pointless question, because I don’t work there.
If you can say “they can’t do that, because of limitation x” now you’re being constructive.
There are any number of ways they could control who is using starlink in a specific geographical area.
Every terminal needs to be activated. All you need is a way to know the activation is coming from Ukrainian forces. That would be trivial. Some passcode, or something like that. Or just a handful of credit cards, which are Ukrainian defense cards, and only those accounts can work in Ukraine. I mean, there are many possible solutions.
When did he deny they were using it?
We all know better.
Strange trait of the fascists. Both support it, and deny it. If you really think this is the morally right thing to do, why not publicly defend it?
Title is incorrect. He denied it was being used in Russia and that maintains to be the case. It has never been usable in Russia.