MAL-2025-5016 Malicious code in 0vulns-dependency-confusion-poc (npm)

Malicious package Published
Package
0vulns-dependency-confusion-poc
Registry
npm

What is MAL-2025-5016?

MAL-2025-5016 is a malicious package in 0vulns-dependency-confusion-poc, published on 12 Jun 2025.

Official description

The package communicates with a domain associated with malicious activity.

The package.json preinstall script runs wget against an attacker-controlled webhook.site URL, passing $(whoami), $(pwd), and $(hostname) as query parameters, executing automatically on npm install. This matches the npm-lifecycle-external-fetch and credential/telemetry exfiltration patterns (findings a static pattern match, a static pattern match, a static pattern match, a static pattern match, a static pattern match). the analysis confirms contextually that the script performs reconnaissance exfiltration to a non-registry collector, and config.unsafe-perm is set to ensure execution. the analysis further notes that the declared main entrypoint is missing and the tarball contains only package.json — the package exists solely to trigger the beacon, with no legitimate runtime functionality. Self-identification as a 'PoC' does not change the risk to an unintended installer (e.g., via dependency confusion).

Any computer that has this package installed or running should be considered fully compromised. All secrets and keys stored on that computer should be rotated immediately from a different computer. The package should be removed, but as full control of the computer may have been given to an outside entity, there is no guarantee that removing the package will remove all malicious software resulting from installing it.

What should I do about MAL-2025-5016?

Remove the package from your dependencies and lockfiles, then rotate any secrets on machines where it was installed.

Sources

Also known as GHSA-r9cf-374f-9q9v, GHSA-wwc9-c8g2-66r2.

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