Nvidia H20 chips pose security concerns for China, claims state media amid backdoor entry allegations

Mint

14 hours ago

After China flagged concerns over the backdoor entry of tech major Nvidia's H20 chips, now the state media claims that these chips pose security threats for Beijing, news agency Reuters reported.
The H20 chips are neither technologically advanced nor environmentally friendly, Yuyuan Tantian, a social media account linked to Chinese state media.
"When a type of chip is neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe, as consumers, we certainly have the option not to buy it," the news agency quoted Tantian.
Nvidia created H20 artificial intelligence chips specifically for the Chinese market following the US export restrictions on advanced AI chips in late 2023. The Trump administration initially prohibited their sale in April due to rising trade tensions with China, but lifted the ban in July.
China's cyberspace regulator announced on July 31 that it had called Nvidia to a meeting, requesting the US chipmaker to clarify if its H20 chips pose any backdoor security issues, which is unauthorised methods that bypass authentication or security controls.
Nvidia later stated that its products had no "backdoors" that could allow remote access or control. The company reaffirmed this position on Sunday when asked for comment on Yuyuan Tantian's article, emphasising that its chips had no backdoors.
'Cybersecurity is critically important to us,' Nvidia said in a statement Thursday. 'Nvidia does not have 'backdoors' in our chips that would give anyone a remote way to access or control them.'
However, Yuyuan Tantian noted that Nvidia chips are capable of performing functions such as "remote shutdown" through a hardware 'backdoor.'
This comment came after Nvidia was criticised by People's Daily, another Chinese state media outlet.
Earlier this month, People's Daily commented that Nvidia needs to provide "convincing security proofs" to alleviate Chinese users' concerns about security risks in its chips and to restore market trust.