Starlink satellite Internet download speeds hit 8Gbps in offshore test as it implements 2FA against account fraud

Earlier this year, SpaceX announced the first mobile community gateway that leverages fast commercial Starlink satellite Internet in remote locations.

At $1.25 million station cost and $75,000 per month for each Gbps of speed achieved, the Starlink mobile gateways don't come cheap, but they may be the only option for local ISPs to provide commercial service in the boondocks.

The land-based gateway is built on the faraway island of Unalaska in Alaska, says Starlink, and "is able to provide 10 gigabits of symmetric uplink and downlink throughput, enough to serve thousands of new customers while operating at over 99% uptime."

Speaking or remote, the chief Starlink engineer Michael Nicolls posted a screenshot that confirms 8Gbps Starlink satellite Internet download speeds from a mobile community gateway deployment "with no land in sight." Back in February, SpaceX got FCC license to test Starlink gateway stations on its launch pads at sea, somewhat explaining the offshore reference in the post.

The remote Starlink gateway test was seemingly done near the coast of Jacksonville, Florida, judging from the screenshots, and Elon Musk retweeted the experiment, confirming that "for large commercial or community users, the Starlink Gateway terminal provides over 8Gbps of downlink and soon over 8Gbps uplink too."

Novelties like said gateways or the Starlink Mini Kit have led to the drastic increase of residential and commercial Starlink subscriber entities. Unfortunately, SpaceX has noticed a corresponding increase in account hijacking attempts. People have been complaining to it on forums and posts about unauthorized purchases, so it has now implemented two-factor authentication (2FA) for Starlink accounts.

"In addition to your password, you will need to verify your identify with a passcode sent to your email or phone number," says Starlink, though the 2FA codes will only be asked for sign-ins, or for changing personal data like your email and phone number associated with the Starlink account.