Ukrainian servicemen prepare to depart from their frontline position in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, 10 February 2026. Photo: EPA / 65th Mechanised Brigade Press Service
A Ukrainian cyber-warfare division said that it had scammed Russian soldiers into giving up sensitive battlefield data — and even paying to do so in many cases — via a fake Starlink registration service, Business Insider reported on Friday.
Following SpaceX’s decision to deactivate all Starlink satellite internet terminals being used on Ukrainian territory that weren’t added to a whitelist by the Ukrainian government last week, Russian units in Ukraine have been cut off from the internet.
Ukraine’s 256th Cyber Assault Division said it had worked with open-source intelligence (OSINT) groups to promote a network of Telegram channels and bots that offered to help Russian troops register Starlink terminals on a Ukrainian whitelist.
The Ukrainian division said it had received data regarding 2,420 Russian Starlink terminals, including their precise locations, as well as $5,870 from Russian troops paying for the fake service, Business Insider continued. It added that 31 Ukrainians had also approached the network looking to help Russians register terminals.
Its statement came after Ukrainian Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War alleged that Russian military personnel had been blackmailing the families of Ukrainian POWs into illegally registering Starlink terminals on Ukrainian territory under their names to allow the Russian military to continue to use them.
Starlink satellite internet does not work in Russia, but provides coverage within the internationally recognised borders of Ukraine, including areas occupied by Russia, meaning that until recently, Russian servicemen were able to use illicitly purchased terminals.
The division said it had passed the Russian data entries on to Serhiy Sternenko, a military blogger and advisor on drone logistics and technology to the Ukrainian Defence Ministry.
InformNapalm, a Ukrainian-European OSINT group, said on Thursday that it had played a supporting role in the operation, submitting fake complaints about Telegram channels helping Russians with Starlink registration, Business Insider continued.
