Nvidia Denies the Existence of Backdoors in Its Chips Amid Security Concerns

Nvidia has stated that its chips do not contain any backdoors that would allow unauthorized access to devices. This was reported by CNBC.

In July, the company announced its intention to resume the sale of H20 AI processors in China after receiving the necessary approval from the U.S. government.

Shortly thereafter, Chinese regulators summoned representatives of the chipmaker for questioning to assess the potential risks associated with the chips.

On July 31, Nvidia met with officials from Beijing to address concerns related to national security.

“Cybersecurity is of utmost importance to us. Nvidia chips do not have ‘backdoors’ that would permit anyone remote access or control,” a company spokesperson stated on August 1.

China’s Cyberspace Administration (CAC) has requested Nvidia to provide clarifications and relevant documentation concerning security threats, including potential vulnerabilities and backdoors in the H20 chips supplied to the country.

The regulator reminded that there had previously been concerns about serious vulnerabilities in the American company’s AI processors. They also noted that U.S. lawmakers have called for mandatory tracking of exports of advanced semiconductors.

The CAC added that American AI experts have already indicated that Nvidia’s computing chips incorporate advanced “tracking and positioning” technologies, as well as remote shutdown capabilities.

In May, Republican Senator Tom Cotton and a bipartisan group of eight members of Congress introduced the U.S. Chip Security Act, which would require semiconductor companies like Nvidia to implement security mechanisms and geolocation verification features in their advanced AI processors.

Democrat Bill Foster, one of the co-authors of the bill in the House of Representatives, along with independent technical experts, told Reuters that technologies for tracking chips already exist and are integrated into Nvidia products.

It’s worth noting that Chinese companies are planning to purchase over 115,000 high-tech Nvidia chips to support new facilities and further train AI models.