Elon Musk Warns Ukraine Starlink Users Could Be Targeted By Russia, Asks To Take These Precautions

Tesla Inc TSLA and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk on Thursday urged Ukrainians to use Starlink with caution, saying the high-speed internet service could be targeted by Russian troops and gave a few pointers on how to go about it.

What Happened: Musk on Twitter said that Starlink was currently the only non-Russian communications system still working in parts of Ukraine and flagged a security warning.

Important warning: Starlink is the only non-Russian communications system still working in some parts of Ukraine, so probability of being targeted is high. Please use with caution.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 3, 2022

He advised Starlink users in Ukraine to turn on the service only when needed and place its antenna as far away from people as possible.

Turn on Starlink only when needed and place antenna away as far away from people as possible

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 3, 2022

Musk also recommended users place a light camouflage, which could include spraying paintwork without any metal over the antenna to avoid visual detection.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 3, 2022

See Also: How Is Elon Musk's Starlink Service Working Out In Ukraine? An Engineer Shares His Experience

Why It Matters: Starlink beams down high-speed internet, especially in remote areas including those ravaged by war or natural calamity, via satellites in orbit to Earth.

The world’s richest person quickly reacted to Ukraine's plea to provide Starlink stations and shipped terminals over the weekend.

Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov later tweeted to show a military truck carrying a cargo of Starlink terminals.

Starlink is known to have launched over 2,000 satellites, with SpaceX hoping to have 4,425 satellites in orbit by 2024. The Federal Communications Commission has approved 11,943 satellites to be launched by Starlink.

Photo by Daniel Oberhaus on Wikimedia