US Embeds Trackers in AI Chip Shipments To Catch Diversions To China (reuters.com)
- Reference: 0178664110
- News link: https://news.slashdot.org/story/25/08/13/1355200/us-embeds-trackers-in-ai-chip-shipments-to-catch-diversions-to-china
- Source link: https://www.reuters.com/world/china/us-embeds-trackers-ai-chip-shipments-catch-diversions-china-sources-say-2025-08-13/
> U.S. authorities have [1]secretly placed location tracking devices in targeted shipments of advanced chips they see as being at high risk of illegal diversion to China, according to two people with direct knowledge of the previously unreported law enforcement tactic. The measures aim to detect AI chips being diverted to destinations which are under U.S. export restrictions, and apply only to select shipments under investigation, the people said.
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> They show the lengths to which the U.S. has gone to enforce its chip export restrictions on China, even as the Trump administration has sought to relax some curbs on Chinese access to advanced American semiconductors. The trackers can help build cases against people and companies who profit from violating U.S. export controls, said the people who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue.
[1] https://www.reuters.com/world/china/us-embeds-trackers-ai-chip-shipments-catch-diversions-china-sources-say-2025-08-13/
Re: (Score:1)
> The Chinese are as dumb as they are.
They are a bunch of alpha males, they are dumb as a box of rocks and they think everybody is dumber than they are.
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More to the point, they think the American people are dumb with a short attention span. They aren't wrong.
The announcement was just to catch a news headline. They are generating them as fast as their little brains can think of them to knock Epstein off the news feeds.
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They are generating them as fast as their little brains can think of them to knock Epstein off the news feeds.
Such as the FBI [1]redacting Trump's name from the Epstein list [newrepublic.com]? The list he has repeatedly said he will fully release?
Why must the victims of Epstein have to go to Congress [2]to tell their stories [yahoo.com]? Why weren't they interviewed like Maxwell was?
[1] https://newrepublic.com/post/198719/fbi-trump-name-redact-epstein-files
[2] https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/bipartisan-group-plans-bring-epstein-141323064.html
Waste of time, let the IRS do it (Score:2)
It's not a national security issue in regards to the chips or we wouldn't have seen a deal with Nvidia so this is just to make sure the government gets it's vig (cool cool cool that the feds are basically loan sharks that will bust thumbs for their money)
Since this tracking must be about revenue collection let the revenue collection service handle it.
So ... (Score:2)
... who makes these trackers?
Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
Secretly?? (Score:3)
"U.S. authorities have secretly..." If it's on Slashdot it's not a secret. The US Government wants everyone to know these trackers are there.
Re: (Score:1)
Take a look at who’s running these departments.
Why wasn't a backdoor installed? (Score:1)
If you assume these AI servers contain integrated WIFI chips, then the question is why a backdoor wasn't installed?
This likely could be only a few lines of code. Also, the transmitted signal doesn't necessarily have to connect to the Internet. It could either send an encrypted packets of message identifying itself or, also, the message could simply state what ports are open and sysadmin credentials. This, then, could be intercepted with a packet sniffer. In any case, there are many other ways a backdoor cou
Guess it (Score:2)
isn't secret anymore, so what's the point?
Re: (Score:2)
Given that Trump has just removed the export restrictions (pay to play - NVidia allowed to export to China as long as they give 15% of revenues to US government !!!), the story is irrelevant.
China had also been using other workarounds, in addition to using less powerful NVidia chips (just need more of them, so not much of a restriction), as well as domestically produced ones fro Huawei. One workaround (scam) has been to have the chips shipped to different country, maybe even installed in a datacenter there,
SECRET - no (Score:1)
It's not a secret, because it isn't true. The US Government wants to plant this false-flag as a deterrent. There are literally MILLIONS of chips send in HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of packages, and they CAN'T BE TRACKED.
I know you're thinking "Apple Tag". That tech needs a receiver, a local transmitter, and software. While you'll find that in any airport in the US, you won't find that on harbor ports, freight or container ships, and offloading terminals. In China. LOL.
This is just something put out "under t
not so secret now? (Score:2)
"U.S. authorities have secretly..."
So... nobody in China reads Slashdot?
Easy countermeasure (Score:1)
One cheap layer of aluminum foil. But the respective US authorities are stupid when it comes to supply-chain security. They are doing a lot more damage than good.
Re: (Score:2)
Read the article.
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Read it. How does that change the GP's comment? Care to point out what it is you're implying?
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They lazy posted. No point, assumptions made, no matter what you say, they will say something else.
Troll shit.
People who have points will provide context.
That said, i wonder if this is related to this, a movie Gamers Nexus is working on (intro video below), on illegal AI chips and who knows what and who is involved. They have also been trying to get our government on the record, so I wonder if this report is a response of sorts.
[1]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltgyS8oJC8g [youtube.com]
With that said, we all kn
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltgyS8oJC8g
Re: (Score:2)
Yeah. I don't expect much, if anything, back from sabbede, but I was pretty curious if there was any point to that. Ex. Are they implying that foil wouldn't block these trackers? Or that the trackers are meant to catch the middlemen that disable them, and that those middlemen are too dumb to notice?
> With that said, we all know those with power, gain in wealth. Meaning, if someone knows about shipments being tagged, they have information to sell. Since corruption is the name of the game of our new government, Im sure there will be problems. Also, Im looking forward to GNs movie they are releasing in 2 days based on this whole thing.
Well said.
Re: (Score:2)
Why wouldn't the foil keep the transmitter from beaconing home? Couldn't the Chinese just scan for RF emissions and pinpoint its location, if the US decides to disguise the chips instead of that cell phone size device the article mentioned?
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You need power to get though foil. Even foil far too thin to completely block the signals would lead to the batteries draining fast.
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You may be clueless about current tracking techniques, I am not.