A glitch in the satellite Internet StarlinkSpaceX mistakenly banned thousands of users last Wednesday (15). According to the company, the problem was caused by a failure in the terminal authentication system, which prevented access to the network in several parts of the world, including Brazil.
The issue affected users who attempted to connect to the network between 11:30 AM and 1:30 PM (Brasilia time) on the 15th. Many on social media reported that they received an error message stating that their terminals were “disabled” or “hanging”. Even subscribers thought it was a scam or hacker invasion.
SpaceX acknowledged the issue and said it was working to fix it as quickly as possible. The flaw was patched in about two hours and affected users received a credit of US$10 in their accounts, about R$50 in direct transfer, which can be used as a discount on monthly payments.
The company apologized for this inconvenience, and said it was taking the necessary measures to prevent the problem from recurring. Starlink is still in the beta testing phase and expects to reach global operational capability by the end of this year. The network currently has about 140 thousand users in 25 countries.
Elon Musk’s network consists of more than 1,800 satellites in low Earth orbit, which communicate with stations installed on the Earth. In Brazil, the residential plan starts at R$184, and the package costs R$1,400 (discounted value).
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