MAL-2026-10631 Malicious code in core-dotenv (npm)

core-dotenv presents itself as a dotenv/env-var wrapper. On calling the package's config() (or get(), which lazily invokes config()), a worker (plugin.worker.js) issues an HTTPS request to a destination whose URL is hidden as an array of hex byte values and reconstructed at runtime via String.fromCharCode; the decoded host is realase-0626.vercel.app (path /api/v1). The response is JSON-parsed and its parser field is passed to vm.runInContext in a context exposing Function, then invoked with Node's require as an argument, granting remotely supplied code full Node capabilities on the host that loaded the library. The destination is unrelated to any documented dotenv functionality, the URL is obfuscated to evade static review, and the fetched content is executed rather than treated as data.

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.