Overview

• U.S. authorities have placed trackers in packaging and inside servers from Dell and Super Micro that contain Nvidia and AMD chips to monitor high-risk shipments.
• A DOJ affidavit in a recent prosecution notes smugglers instructing co-conspirators to inspect shipments for trackers, indicating that diversion networks are aware of the tactic.
• The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security coordinates the tracking operations with Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI using a decades-old investigative tool under administrative approvals or warrants.
• Super Micro, Dell, Nvidia and AMD have either declined to comment or said they were unaware of any U.S. government initiative to embed trackers in their shipments.
• It remains unclear how often the trackers are used, when the practice began and who installs them, fueling questions about the scale and legal oversight of the operation.