# MAL-2026-10397: Malicious code in @car_loans/dealerships-approval (npm)


- **Type:** Malicious package
- **Package:** `@car_loans/dealerships-approval` (npm)
- **Published:** 13 Jul 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-p8xg-5qpp-p289

## What is MAL-2026-10397?

MAL-2026-10397 is a malicious package in @car_loans/dealerships-approval, published on 13 Jul 2026. 

### Official description

@car_loans/dealerships-approval 7.1.5 self-describes as a 'browserslist config' but ships a heavily obfuscated postinstall dropper. package.json declares "postinstall": "node scripts/postinstall.js"; that script uses a rotating string-array + RC4 decoder plus byte-array-to-String.fromCharCode wrappers to hide every module name, method, and URL fragment. On `npm install`, the script HTTPS-GETs a remote payload assembled from base64 fragments, RC4-decrypts the response, writes it to disk, chmods 0o755, and spawns it detached with `stdio:'ignore'` and `unref()` — attacker-controlled code executed on the installer's machine with no user interaction. Before and after payload execution, it collects `os.hostname()`, `os.userInfo().username`, platform, arch, package name/version, and an event tag and POSTs them to a base64-assembled remote host; it also encodes fingerprint data into `<hex>.<rand>.<host>` subdomain labels and calls `dns.resolve4` as a DNS-tunnel side channel intended to bypass HTTP egress filtering. The package additionally exhibits the classic dependency-confusion shape: an unusual underscore scope `@car_loans/*`, README that labels it an 'Internal package — Platform Engineering Team', and homepage/repository/registry URLs on the non-existent `car-loans.io` domain instructing consumers to point `.npmrc` at `https://npm.car-loans.io`. Any developer at a targeted organization who resolves this name from the public registry receives immediate install-time code execution and host fingerprint exfiltration.

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-2026-10397?

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

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
MAL-2026-10397 is a malicious package: @car_loans/dealerships-approval (npm). Every version was published to cause harm.

Task:
1. Search this repository's dependency manifests and lockfiles for the package, including transitive dependencies.
2. If it is present, remove it, regenerate the lockfile with the project's package manager, and replace whatever it was used for.
3. List any CI runners, developer machines or containers that installed it, so their secrets can be rotated.
4. If the package is not used anywhere, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-10397/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-10397/index.md)
```

## Sources

- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/MAL-2026-10397

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-10397/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.