India is reviewing Elon Musk's Starlink satellite internet service, concerned that its laser-linked satellites could route data across borders, posing national security risks. Safeguards are being planned, potentially restricting the technology's use for Indian users.
The Indian government's potential curbs on Starlink's laser-linked satellite technology could impact the rollout of Elon Musk's satellite internet service in the country and highlight the growing tension between technological advancement and national security concerns in the digital age.
India is considering imposing restrictions on how Elon Musk's Starlink satellite internet service routes data, citing national security concerns related to its laser inter-satellite link (LISL) technology. The government is worried that this technology, which allows satellites to beam data directly to one another in space, could enable Indian data to bypass national borders and potentially be routed through hostile jurisdictions or surveillance hubs before reaching its destination.
Sources familiar with the matter indicated that the government is unlikely to permit the use of interlinked satellites for providing internet services in India in a manner that allows data to bypass national borders. This poses a significant hurdle for Starlink, which relies on this technology to create a mesh network in space. The older generation of Starlink satellites do not have this laser link capability, but newer ones do, leading to plans for safeguards that could involve disabling or heavily restricting these links for traffic involving Indian users.
Starlink, owned by SpaceX, has been actively engaging with Indian authorities to address these fears, including demonstrating its technology to security agencies. The company has been told that its routing tables must be programmed to ensure that any data packet originating from an Indian terminal downlinks to an Indian gateway and does not jump to a foreign gateway. The remote control capability of the Starlink system by SpaceX in the US has also been highlighted as a serious concern, particularly given its use in recent conflicts where coverage was geofenced and modified remotely.
Companies planning to offer similar satellite communication services, such as the Jio-SES satellite joint venture and Eutelsat Oneweb, do not use laser link technology, making Starlink the only player currently facing this specific issue. While these three firms have received satcom permits, none have yet obtained security clearance to start services. Starlink is in the process of setting up gateways and control centers in India to comply with security regulations, but the government is taking a cautious approach to granting clearance due to the complex security audit required for the laser links.