TrendAI says ad tech firm targeted Starlink users for surveillance

Digital defence firm TrendAI has alleged that an Israeli ad tech company, Discover-Tech, was among the largest providers of online ads shown to SpaceX Starlink users, with the findings suggesting the ads could be used to geolocate or surveil individuals.

Six sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on 27 October that TrendAI’s unit, part of Trend Micro, concluded Discover-Tech was a major source of Starlink-targeted advertisements and that the advertising activity likely served surveillance purposes rather than commercial advertising. SpaceX did not comment, and Discover-Tech and its chief executive did not respond to requests over the preceding two weeks.

TrendAI’s report, which Examines SHADOW-EARTH-79 as the codename for Discover-Tech, claims the firm used advertising infrastructure for geolocation tracking and intelligence gathering, with Starlink traffic showing strong bid activity from that entity. The researchers highlighted that SHADOW-EARTH-79 was the top bidder in more than 100 countries, including several where Starlink is restricted.

They also noted an over‑representation of Starlink-facing ads and reported that Discover-Tech dominated bids in Syria, Libya, Yemen, and South Sudan, and was heavily active in Afghanistan, Hungary, Israel, Egypt, Azerbaijan and Venezuela. Citizen Lab and Confiant subsequently named Discover-Tech and said its ad-bidding practices could leak user data back to the bidder, potentially de-anonymising users. The piece cites local responses from Google and other platforms removing Discover-Tech from ad networks.

TrendAI’s report argues the system is better viewed as targeting and tracking infrastructure rather than a straightforward advertising platform.