White House weighed risks as DHS reviewed Bitmain mining gear

Department of Homeland Security-led investigation, known as Operation Red Sunset, examined whether Bitmain’s bitcoin-mining machines could be remotely manipulated for spying or used to disrupt the U.S. power grid, according to a U.S. official and others familiar with the review. The months-long effort included chip and firmware inspections of Bitmain equipment detained at U.S. ports and an assessment of potential tariff and import-duty violations.

The work ran alongside policy discussions at the White House’s National Security Council that began under President Joe Biden and continued into at least the early months of the Trump administration in 2025, the official indicated. Authorities have not disclosed findings, and the current status of the review remains unclear. A DHS spokesperson stated the agency does not comment on open and active investigations.

Bitmain responded that it complies with U.S. laws and has never engaged in activities that threaten U.S. national security. The company called claims that it can remotely control devices “unequivocally false” and said it is unaware of any inquiry called Operation Red Sunset or of probes into tariffs or other import duties. It attributed past detentions of equipment at ports to routine Federal Communications Commission checks and noted that nothing out of the ordinary was found. The firm also rejected suggestions of ties to the Chinese government.

Scrutiny of Chinese-linked bitcoin mining in the U.S. increased last year after facilities were identified near sensitive locations, including one beside a Microsoft data center that supports the Pentagon and another near an Air Force nuclear missile base in Cheyenne, Wyoming. A July report from the Senate Intelligence Committee described several vulnerabilities in certain devices and labeled the equipment an unacceptable risk near critical sites. Many of these operations used Bitmain machines.

The inquiry has drawn renewed attention in Washington as members of President Donald Trump’s family expand involvement in bitcoin mining. Their venture with Hut 8, American Bitcoin, purchased 16,000 Bitmain machines in August for $314 million, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. A representative for American Bitcoin wrote that the company takes national security, grid stability and operational security seriously and that extensive testing found no vulnerabilities permitting remote access. Administration officials have rejected concerns that family business interests could influence federal investigations.

Bitmain is among the largest suppliers of bitcoin-mining hardware globally, and a large share of U.S. miners use its machines. The DHS review included technical inspections of hardware and software to determine whether any backdoors or remote-access functions exist that could be used to gather data from mining sites or disrupt operations. Investigators also reviewed import practices tied to this equipment as part of trade-compliance checks at ports of entry.

Companies that run large mining sites in the U.S. report they have added security controls around networking and firmware, including isolating equipment from the public internet and verifying software integrity. American Bitcoin indicated its due diligence included third-party testing of the Bitmain hardware it acquired and ongoing monitoring for anomalous device behavior.

Neither DHS nor Bitmain has provided a timeline for the inquiry. Mining firms using Bitmain equipment in the U.S. continue to operate while awaiting clarity on the status and scope of Operation Red Sunset.

As GNcrypto covered previously, Amazon and Microsoft backed the GAIN AI Act, folded into the National Defense Authorization Act, requiring AI chipmakers like Nvidia to prioritize U.S. orders and further restrict shipments to China. Lawmakers are weighing a domestic-first queue as GPUs remain scarce, citing concerns that access to advanced hardware could bolster China’s military and surveillance capabilities. Anthropic supports the bill, while Meta and Google have not taken a position. Nvidia warned the plan could limit global competition and reduce computing capacity outside the United States.