SpaceX Disables 2,500 Starlink Terminals Allegedly Used By Asian Scam Centers (arstechnica.com) 50
SpaceX has deactivated over 2,500 Starlink terminals allegedly used by scam operations in Myanmar, where the service isn't licensed but was reportedly enabling large-scale cybercrime networks tied to human trafficking and fraud. Ars Technica reports: Lauren Dreyer, vice president of Starlink business operations, described the action in an X post last night after reports that Myanmar's military shut down a major scam operation: "SpaceX complies with local laws in all 150+ markets where Starlink is licensed to operate," Dreyer wrote. "SpaceX continually works to identify violations of our Acceptable Use Policy and applicable law... On the rare occasion we identify a violation, we take appropriate action, including working with law enforcement agencies around the world. In Myanmar, for example, SpaceX proactively identified and disabled over 2,500 Starlink Kits in the vicinity of suspected 'scam centers.'"
Starlink is not licensed to operate in Myanmar. While Dreyer didn't say how the terminals were disabled, it's known that Starlink can disable individual terminals based on their ID numbers or use geofencing to block areas from receiving signals. On Monday, Myanmar state media reported that "Myanmar's military has shut down a major online scam operation near the border with Thailand, detaining more than 2,000 people and seizing dozens of Starlink satellite Internet terminals," according to an Associated Press article. The army reportedly raided a cybercrime center known as KK Park as part of operations that began in early September. The operations reportedly targeted 260 unregistered buildings and resulted in seizure of 30 Starlink terminals and detention of 2,198 people.
"Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, the spokesperson for the military government, charged in a statement Monday night that the top leaders of the Karen National Union, an armed ethnic organization opposed to army rule, were involved in the scam projects at KK Park," the AP wrote. The Karen National Union is "part of the larger armed resistance movement in Myanmar's civil war" and "deny any involvement in the scams."
Starlink is not licensed to operate in Myanmar. While Dreyer didn't say how the terminals were disabled, it's known that Starlink can disable individual terminals based on their ID numbers or use geofencing to block areas from receiving signals. On Monday, Myanmar state media reported that "Myanmar's military has shut down a major online scam operation near the border with Thailand, detaining more than 2,000 people and seizing dozens of Starlink satellite Internet terminals," according to an Associated Press article. The army reportedly raided a cybercrime center known as KK Park as part of operations that began in early September. The operations reportedly targeted 260 unregistered buildings and resulted in seizure of 30 Starlink terminals and detention of 2,198 people.
"Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, the spokesperson for the military government, charged in a statement Monday night that the top leaders of the Karen National Union, an armed ethnic organization opposed to army rule, were involved in the scam projects at KK Park," the AP wrote. The Karen National Union is "part of the larger armed resistance movement in Myanmar's civil war" and "deny any involvement in the scams."
Missed Opportunity... (Score:5, Funny)
Starlink should have badly degraded the service and when contacted for tech support, forward the calls to a pakistani scam call center. It would have been a full snake eat tail opportunity.
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People are wondering that now.
They could hire Kitboga for that (Score:2)
If they ever want to do that, they should hire Kitboga. He made a digital maze [youtube.com] where a bunch of scammers are still looking for some bitcoin that doesn't exist by solving captchas, waiting on hold in ridiculous phone trees, etc.
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Even if they try to hide their traffic through mules they need trunk connections for their volume. They can only get those from a handful of companies and even with mules those are easy enough to find for the CIA. Cut them off, or cut who provides them off, or cut who provides their provider off ... it will work.
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PS. it would become difficult if China starts giving them microwave links directly into their system and obscures their traffic, at that point you would have to cut off China. Though at that point I think you should cut off China.
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China's been quite active in catching these scammers, because a lot of the people running the operations are Chinese expats (that they take back to China and imprison), and a lot of the scam victims are Chinese residents. China definitely won't be doing anything to facilitate these scams.
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a lot of the scam victims were Chinese residents. FTFY.
While the scammers learnt and refined their business model with Chinese victims, the Chinese government has long made sure they target foreigners in the West. The heads of the criminal gangs are even promoting Chinese values and culture abroad to endear themselves to the CCP. Read up on guys like Broken Tooth [wikipedia.org] to understand how they have developed.
And you can be damn sure that China won't be doing anything to rein in the scammers, as long as they do not
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The operations reportedly targeted 260 unregistered buildings..
After reading that snippet, my confidence in their legal enforcement capability fell through the floor and into the basement.
An unlicensed terminal looks like a carpet stain in comparison to hundreds of fucking buildings being unregistered to exist. And we wonder why criminal minds target Myanmar? I mean, damn.
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Re:if these were criminal operations, wouldn't the (Score:4, Insightful)
It's crooks trying to scam gift cards out of your granma, what useful data would you gather from eavesdropping their calls?
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Re: if these were criminal operations, wouldn't th (Score:2)
Well that was fast (Score:3)
Said they could/should do just that here a while ago. With heuristics and triangulation it's easy for them to find these operations.
For some reason Feds and Starlink suddenly woke up and stopped looking the other way. They let it grow to ridiculous size in the meantime though.
Now keep going and (secondary) sanction any telecom company cooperating with these outfits into bankruptcy, they are easy enough to track. These centralized criminal enterprises reliant in telecom should not exist, it's far too easy to track and stop.
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You have no obligation to communicate with them, if they don't clean up their act cut off the entire country. Problem solved, they will get it done.
There is a time and place for multilateralism, but also for Trumpianism.
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"but also for Trumpianism" What? Do a "deal" with el Bunko where he pockets his take? That sort of el Bunkoism?
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SpaceX must be sleeping at the wheel (or just happy to rake in the profit).
They know exactly where every terminal is located.
They knew that they had 2500 terminals operating illegally in Myanmar.
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The CIA knew and knows exactly where all the camps are and which route their calls take too, but they grew a trillion dollar scam nonetheless.
There has to be a willingness to take extraterritorial action by unilateral decision. If Starlink cuts of a Rohingya refugee camp by mistake, they'll get accused of taking action without oversight.
The politically correct thing to do is talk endlessly about it at the UN and hand out some ineffective sanctions.
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SpaceX has no problem cutting off people who move out of their designated area or are operating in an unauthorized area.
No extraterritorial barriers.
As long as they pay their bills, SpaceX is happy.
Speedy judgement (Score:3, Informative)
We are hearing one side of the story. The side of a military dictatorship.
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So there are absolutely NO compounds in Myanmar that using human trafficking to facilitate scam operations, even though there have been oodles of investigations and evidence pinpointing the exact addresses of these operations? Dang, we've all been... scammed! [eye roll]
Re:Speedy judgement (Score:4, Insightful)
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So there are absolutely NO compounds in Myanmar that using human trafficking to facilitate scam operations, even though there have been oodles of investigations and evidence pinpointing the exact addresses of these operations?
Your teacher returned your exams face down to you didn't she. I'm not even going to bother telling you what logical fallacy you just committed because it is unfair to use such a big word.
Everywhere? (Score:2)
""SpaceX complies with local laws in all 150+ markets where Starlink is licensed to operate,"
They don't switch off the Internet in Algeria during the high-school exams (Baccalaureate), like everybody else, so I guess there will be a few vans with suspicious antennas parking in from of the exam centers. :-)
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Starlink isn't licensed to operate in Algeria though. If you don't license them, you get no control over how they deal with connections from spill over areas.
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So, JUST LIKE in Myanmar, the article is about?
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Yes, just like there it's an unilateral decision by Elon.
Re: Everywhere? (Score:1)
Starlink is not licensed to operate in Myanmar (Score:2)
I knew it! The Karens are a front for crime! (Score:3)
It was just a matter of time before they were exposed.
Armed Karens? (Score:2)
Sounds like an exercise in CYA (Score:2)
It was only after Myanmar's military closed up the call centers when SpaceX decided it was "unlicensed" for that country. They knew damn well what those call centers were doing and they did nothing until now. What's the matter Elmo, did some shit splatter you?
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It was only after Myanmar's military closed up the call centers when SpaceX decided it was "unlicensed" for that country. They knew damn well what those call centers were doing and they did nothing until now. What's the matter Elmo, did some shit splatter you?
Yep, so long as there is no penalty in western countries for providing these services to scam centres, they'll continue to do it.
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That ther
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Trump loves dictators though, so I wouldn't count on the USA doing the right thing until Trump is out of power.
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FWIW, both the Democrats and the Republicans pretty much fit the Mussolini definition of fascism. "The government working together with the commercial companies to benefit and strengthen the country". There's the implication of centralized control by the government in Mussolini's formulation, but I think a oligarchy or plutocracy would also fit.
I don't think fascism is NECESSARILY bad, but it sure is easy to turn it that way. (Fascism is NOT Nazism. They really are distinct, if compatible, organizationa
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Do they really know all 150+ areas laws? (Score:1)
"SpaceX complies with local laws in all 150+ markets where Starlink is licensed to operate," Dreyer wrote
Oh really? First of they do not list the exact amount of different laws or even what I seem to read as their 150+ called "markets"; just some number more than that. Could they list all of the laws they are complying with? Seeing nations have public laws on their website at the very least list all applicable laws they are complicating with.
Europol doing it too (Score:5, Informative)
https://x.com/Rainmaker1973/st... [x.com]
Europol just dismantled a SIM farm-for-hire platform that powered 49 million fake accounts used for global fraud.
The problem with internet everywhere! (Score:2)
Many places still have those that would hit you over the head and take all your stuff including your shoes. The difference is that in some countries those types are still afraid of law enforcement.
The internet shows that in the carrot vs stick analogy only the stick works.