A Bloomberg News investigation identified wide-spanning examples of Starlink kits being traded and activated illegally.
Or take Sudan, where a year-long civil war has led to accusations of genocide, crimes against humanity and millions of people fleeing their homes. Musk, until recently the world’s richest person, has said there will be a cap to how much money SpaceX’s launch services business will make, while Starlink could eventually reach revenue of $30 billion a year.
In central Asia, where Starlink deals are rare, a government crackdown on illicit terminals in Kazakhstan this year has barely made a dent in its use. The growing black market for Starlink has emerged in regions with patchy connectivity, where the allure of high speed, dependable internet in an easy-to-use package is strong for businesses and consumers alike.The US military is a customer: The Air Force has been testing terminals in the Arctic, calling them “reliable and high-performance.”
Two House Democrats wrote a letter to SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell pressing her on Ukraine’s claims. “To the best of our knowledge, no Starlinks have been sold directly or indirectly to Russia,” Musk wrote on X. “There needs to be more accountability: to your country, to your company, to your shareholders, to your stakeholders,” said Johnson, who is also a partner with Seraphim Capital, a venture capital firm that invests in space startups.
Gold miners in remote areas along the borders of South Sudan and the Central African Republic were provided with Starlink services even prior to the war by traders working in South Darfur’s Nyala City.Haroun Mohamed, a trader in Nyala who transports goods across the border to Chad and South Sudan, said the use of Starlink by RSF soldiers and civilians was widespread.
In Zimbabwe, authorities threatened raids in response to online advertising for Starlink equipment, as reported by the H-Metro newspaper in January. According to Chief Commercial Officer Hisham El Gabry, there has been significant demand, with the first shipment to Nigeria selling out in a few hours. One Facebook group of people complaining they’d been cut off suggests that Starlink has recently deactivated some of the equipment smuggled into South Africa.
President Joe Biden’s administration could tighten the export controls that apply to Starlink to keep them out of the hands of American adversaries, according to a former US government official.