Elon Musk Starlink expands in the White House complex

Starlink, the Satellite Internet service operated by Spacex by Elon Musk, is now accessible throughout the White House campus. It is the last installation of the Wi-Fi network throughout the government since Musk joined the Trump administration as an unpaid advisor.

It was not clear immediately when the White House complex was equipped with Starlink after President Trump took office for a second mandate.

Starlink terminals, rectangular panels that receive internet signals transmitted by Spacex satellites in low land orbit, can be placed in physical structures. But instead of being physically placed in the White House, it is now said that the Starlink system is enrutrous through a Data Center of the White House, with existing fiber cables, miles from the complex.

White House officials said the installation was an effort to increase the availability of the Internet in the complex. They said that some areas of the property could not obtain the cell service and that the existing Wi-Fi infrastructure was overloaded.

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said the effort was “to improve Wi-Fi connectivity in the complex.”

But circumstances are different from any previous situation to resolve Internet services. Musk, who is now an unpaid advisor who works as a “special employee of the Government” in the White House, controls Starlink and other companies that have regulatory issues before or contracts with the federal government. The questions about their commercial interests in conflict with their status as presidential advisor and donor of Major Trump have persisted for weeks.

In February, Chris Stanley, who currently works as a security engineer in two of Mr. Musk, Spacex's companies and the social media platform x, went to the Eisenhower executive office building in the White House complex to explore Starlink installation there. Stanley has also been working with the Efficiency Department of Mr. Musk's government as a special government employee, and Monday, President Trump He named it for the board of Fannie Mae.

When Mr. Stanley opened a door that leads to the roof of the building, which is directly opposed to an entrance to the White House, stumbled upon an alarm that alerted the secret service of his presence. He created a dramatic scene when a uniformed officer hastened to respond, according to four people with knowledge of the incident.

A fifth person with knowledge of the event said the secret service previously told Mr. Stanley who could see the ceiling, but that the agency had not coordinated a moment for the arrival of Mr. Stanley.

Harrison Fields, a White House spokesman, said the White House “was aware of Doge's intentions to improve Internet access on campus” and that “a security incident or security rape did not consider this issue.”

Anthony Guglielmi, a spokesman for the Secret Service, also said that it was not considered a violation or a security incident.

White House officials said Starlink had “donated” the service and that the gift had been examined by the lawyer who supervises ethics problems in the White House lawyer's office.

Some former officials were not clear about how such donation could work.

Clare Martorana, a former White House Information Director during the Biden Administration, said that people cannot simply give technology to the government. She said that the White House Information Director would need to sign a new system to ensure that it was ensured properly, as well as the Information Director of the General Services Administration.

Mr. Stanley worked to establish the new Starlink system in concert with the White House Information technology Office, which he is an advisor while he is also assigned to work in the Department of Justice, said one of the people familiar with the matter.

The White House is the last property of the government in which Starlink now operates.

In recent weeks, Starlink also settled in the administration of general services, which has served as a center for the start -up efforts of Mr. Musk, according to documents and people familiar with the service.

Although several federal agencies hire with Starlink, the satellite service is generally used to provide internet access in emergency situations and in remote locations, not in federal buildings in Washington, which already have large Internet options.

Starlink is usually seen as a reliable network. In October, the Federal Emergency Management Agency hired with Starlink to distribute terminals for service in North Carolina after Hurricane Helene hit the state. The service has also been crucial for the defenses of Ukraine against Russia, and Spacex estimates in the Department of Defense that cost $ 400 million to support the effort for a period of 12 months around 2022.

However, it is less clear that the Starlink Internet service will significantly expand the wireless internet capacity in buildings where fiber cables already provide access.

Nor was it clear if Starlink's communications were encrypted. At a minimum, the system allows a separate network of existing White House servers that people on the ground can use, maintaining those separate data.

“It is super rare” to install Starlink or other Internet provider as a replacement for existing government infrastructure that has been examined and insured, said Jake Williams, vice president of research and development in Hunter Strategy, a cybersecurity consulting. “I can't think of a moment that I have heard of that.”

“It presents another point of attack,” Williams said. “But why introduce that risk?”

An official with knowledge of the discussions about the installation of Starlink in the White House, who was not authorized to speak publicly, said the secret service was worried that the Starlink system could enter through the hard wiring existing insurance in the White House that is used by the secret service, as well as other federal agencies. The fact that the Internet service is now working through a different data center seems to have addressed that concern.

In the administration of general services, where was the use of Starlink <a target="_blank" class="css-yywogo" href="https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/elon-musk/elon-musk-starlink-growing-footprint-federal-government-rcna195400″ title=”” rel=”noopener noreferrer” target=”_blank”>previously informed by NBC NewsThe service has been added to a list of approved applications to download on the agency's mobile devices. This list also includes applications from two other companies led by musk, x and Tesla, according to documents seen by the New York Times.

“Only applications that meet GSA's safety and privacy standards are allowed,” said an agency spokesman in a statement. The agency declined to comment on its use of Starlink.

Mr. Musk has expressed his frustration for what he sees as an outdated technology in government and has advanced with an effort to modernize it.

Shortly after Trump swore, Mr. Musk complained that a digital system known as waves, which allows the secret service to approve the guests to enter the land of the White House, was clumsy. Some White House officials shared that evaluation. Mr. Musk commissioned Mr. Stanley to fix it, according to two people informed about the matter.

Mr. Guglielmi, the spokesman for the Secret Service, said that the agency “collaborates closely with” Mr. Musk's team and has continuous discussions. At this time, he added: “Formal changes have not been made in the White House visitors access system.”

Jonathan Swan and Tyler Pager Contributed reports.