SpaceX’s Starlink tells Brazil telecoms regulator it will not block X until bank accounts are unfrozen, amidst legal row

SpaceX internet subsidiary Starlink has said it will not comply with a Brazilian court order to block social media platform X, formerly Twitter, in the latest twist in a row between X owner Elon Musk and Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes.

Anatel head Carlos Baigorri said in an interview with Globo TV that Starlink’s lawyers had told the telecoms regulator it would not be complying with the order.

Baigorri said he passed the information along to Justice Moraes “so that he can take the measures he deems appropriate”.

He said the response had been received from Starlink’s lawyers and that he would “wait and see if they formalize this in the records”.

Starlink refusal

He said Anatel could revoke Starlink’s licence to operate in Brazil, which would “hypothetically” prevent the company from offering connections to Brazilians.

Starlink’s bank accounts were frozen last month in an effort to recoup more than $3 million (£2.3m) in fines levied on X over its refusal to comply with court orders blocking certain accounts.

The company, whose parent SpaceX is also led by Musk, said it would not comply with the order to block X until its bank accounts were unfrozen.

Starlink offers its services directly to users, meaning it could try to continue offering services in Brazil without a licence, in violation of Brazilian law.

In response Anatel could seize Starlink equipment at 23 ground stations in the country, which is there to help improve connections, Baigorri told Globo News.

An earlier petition by Starlink to Brazil’s Supreme Court to unlock its assets was dismissed.

Sealed orders

The firm said it would provide service for free to Brazilians while it was unable to process transactions.

On Saturday X began publishing sealed orders from Moraes to block certain X accounts that were under investigation.

Moraes has been investigating “digital militias” that allegedly participated in an effort to overthrow the government after the election defeat of right-wing former president Jair Bolsonaro in October 2022, the same year that Starlink began operating in Brazil.

He ordered X blocked in the country after the firm began ignoring court orders to suspend accounts and closed its office in the country.

A majority of Supreme Court justices have upheld the order blocking X.