Kenyan authorities have issued a demand to Elon Musk’s Starlink to provide national identity (ID) cards, postal addresses and phone numbers of its subscribers to curb cybercrime amid surveillance and privacy concerns.
Starlink has informed its satellite internet subscribers that services risk being discontinued from May if they fail to provide the identification documents for State use.
Kenyan regulations require all operators to register mobile phone line users to help curb phone-based crimes.
The State had dropped the slackness in seeking registration for satellite internet subscribers in the wake of the surge of Starlink’s rollout and dominance.
The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) reckons that the need for subscriber data is in line with the revised registration requirement unveiled by the ICT Cabinet Secretary, William Kabogo.
Telecoms companies are required to capture subscribers’ ID cards or passport details, name, postal address, and biometric data.
The regulations also require the operators to ensure completion of a form labelled Form 1, which captures many entries including biometric details.
But digital rights groups reckon that registration has provided the State with a tool for surveillance.
Starlink has directed Kenyan customers to submit their name, date of birth, gender, a photo of a government-issued identification document (ID card or passport), and a passport-sized photo online through their Starlink account.
This should be followed by a visit to authorised Starlink retailers with an ID card or passport to verify their identity to continue receiving service.
“As required by local authorities in Kenya, all Starlink customers must complete identity verification in person at an authorised retailer,” reads an email the American satellite internet company sent customers.
“Please complete this verification by April 30, 2026. If verification is not completed by this date, your service may be interrupted.” The CA said it is tightening the regulation for satellite internet providers to bring them in line with local service rules.
“These regulations repeal the previous Kenya Information and Communications (Registration of SIM Cards) Regulations, 2015, which focused primarily on SIM card subscribers,” the CA told the Business Daily via email.
“The new regulations require all subscribers to ICT services to be registered, and their details authenticated in the National Integrated Population Registration System.”
The CA at the time said the regulations were developed to protect SIM card holders from fraud and criminal activities and support secure access to digital services.
Tying accounts to verified physical identities within Kenya gives authorities more visibility of who is connected and their location, experts say.
“Without this information, it would be harder for authorities to identify the person behind the online activity of an IP address; the regulators would have to go through Starlink to request that data,” Joseph Khago, a Nairobi-based IT specialist, told the Business Daily.
“The new push essentially gives the government more control.”
Kenya already enforces strict Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements for SIM cards and telecoms services, which mandate in-person registration using original identification documents with operator-side verification.
The number of Kenyans using satellite internet has surged since Starlink, a subsidiary of Musk’s aerospace company SpaceX, entered the Kenyan market in July 2024.
The American firm, riding on the back of the world’s richest persons with a net worth of $850 billion (Sh109.6 trillion), is betting on lowering internet costs in a segment dominated by Safaricom, Jamii Telecommunications Limited (JTL) and Zuku.
The entry of Musk’s internet firm upset Safaricom, with telecoms operator pushing for satellite operators to partner with existing internet service providers instead of firms like Starlink opening shop as stand-alone operations.
It argued that their direct entry to the market poses a danger to network quality of mobile telephony.
Kenya’s fixed internet is dominated by Safaricom, which enjoys a market share of 35.6 percent, latest data from the regulator shows.
The giant telco is followed by JTL with a market share of 20.4 percent, Zuku (11.8 percent) and Poa Internet Kenya (11.6percent). Starlink’s market share stood at 0.8 percent.
The demand for the internet in Kenya has surged as its use goes beyond entertainment to work-related activities.
Starlink’s entry into the Kenyan market has intensified competition with local players, especially for the far-flung areas that are yet to be served using conventional terrestrial technology.
CA data shows that Starlinks’ internet subscriptions hit 19,470 in September last year, up from 8,063 in December 2024.
The Kabogo regulations on registration kicked up a storm, with some rules suggesting the State’s intention to collect biometric data, including blood typing, fingerprinting and DNA, for new SIM card registration.
The regulator reckons that the presence of biometric requirements in the revised regulations doesn’t indicate its intention to collect the personal data, adding that it has not directed the telecoms operators to collect the data. The mention of biometric in the regulations, said the CA, does not point to collection of the personal data.
The revised regulations give mobile operators the power to suspend services where subscribers provide false information or repeatedly ignore registration requirements.
This includes when a child attains 18 years of age and fails to register their personal identification details within 90 days.
Operators are, however, required to give notice through notifications and advertisements in print and broadcast media, before the disconnection.
