Redazione RHC : 16 August 2025 19:38
According to media reports, US authorities are secretly embedding tracking devices in chip shipments that could be illegally diverted to China. The trackers could be used in shipments of equipment from Dell, SuperMicro, Nvidia, and AMD.
The US government’s tactic is limited to individual shipments, Reuters reported this week, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter. The goal is to identify cases where shipments of AI chips are being diverted to destinations that should be subject to export restrictions. The trackers are intended to help bring lawsuits against individuals and companies that profit from violating export controls.
Note that U.S. law enforcement agencies have been using similar methods for several decades and often track goods subject to export controls (for example, aircraft parts). Therefore, according to one of the sources, trackers have also been used in recent years to combat illegal semiconductor trafficking.
Five other people involved in the AI server supply chain told the news agency that trackers are commonly used to track server hardware shipments from manufacturers such as Dell, Super Micro, Nvidia, and AMD. They said the beacons are typically hidden in packaging, but it’s unknown who is involved in installing them or where along the way this occurs.
For example, in one case in 2024, a shipment of Dell servers with Nvidia chips was reportedly equipped with large trackers on the shipping boxes and smaller, more discreet devices hidden inside the packages and even in the servers themselves. In another case, the source said he personally saw images and videos of other chip vendors removing tracking devices from Dell and Super Micro servers. He added that some of the larger devices were the size of a smartphone.
Such operations typically involve the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security, which oversees exports, and may also involve Homeland Security Investigations and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), agency sources said. Reuters reports that it was not possible to determine how often the trackers were used in investigations, nor when exactly U.S. authorities began using them in their investigations.
Super Micro said it does not disclose “the security practices and policies it employs to protect its operations, partners, and customers around the world.” The company declined to comment on any surveillance measures by U.S. authorities. Dell said it is “not aware of any US government initiatives to install tracking devices in the products it distributes.” Nvidia said it does not install secret tracking devices in its products. AMD did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
It’s worth noting that this publication appeared against the backdrop of a conflict that began in August between Chinese authorities and Nvidia. The fact is that China’s regulator, the State Internet Administration of China (CAC), accuses Nvidia of incorporating secret surveillance and remote shutdown tools (“backdoors” and “kill switches”) into H20 AI chips designed specifically for the Chinese market (these are stripped-down versions of flagship AI chips with reduced performance).
Shortly before, Nvidia had received authorization to resume sales of H20 after Washington lifted a previous export ban. In response, Nvidia representatives categorically denied the allegations, stating that the company’s chips do not contain backdoors or remote shutdown tools, and further emphasizing that such features would violate fundamental principles of cybersecurity.
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