Elon Musk’s Starlink internet is now active at the White House, but instead of just boosting Wi-Fi, it’s stirring up major security concerns and ethical questions. The New York Times reports that while the service was installed to improve connectivity, its rollout has been anything but smooth—especially after a Musk employee triggered a security alarm while scouting a rooftop installation.
The Secret Service alarm that no one saw coming
The chaos started when Chris Stanley, a SpaceX security engineer, went up to the roof of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building—which sits right next to the White House—to check out whether Starlink could be installed there. But instead of securing a satellite spot, he ended up tripping a Secret Service alarm, causing security to rush to the scene. The Times says the Secret Service knew about his work but didn’t expect him at that specific moment.
But here’s where it gets weird—Starlink isn’t even installed on the White House roof. Instead, the administration is piping the service in from a government data center miles away, raising even more questions about why a SpaceX employee was poking around restricted areas.
Several conflicts of interests
Stanley isn’t just a random engineer—he’s also part of the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), the team Musk set up to help Trump slash federal jobs and budgets. So his involvement goes way beyond internet installation. Meanwhile, Starlink just landed a massive $2.4 billion government contract to replace Verizon in upgrading air traffic control communications. Critics, including Senator Elizabeth Warren, are demanding an investigation into whether Musk’s cozy relationship with Trump is giving him unfair business advantages.
Security risks and unanswered questions
Beyond the ethical concerns, cybersecurity experts are skeptical about Starlink being used on government networks at all. Security pro Jake Williams called it an unnecessary risk, arguing that it introduces a potential new attack point for hackers.
Musk, as expected, has brushed off the criticism, while Trump says any conflicts will be "handled." But let’s be real—this is just the beginning of this controversy.
