MAL-2026-14031 Malicious code in datefmt-core-utils (npm)
Malicious package
Published
MAL-2026-14031 is a malicious package: datefmt-core-utils (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-2026-14031/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-14031/index.md)
- Package
- datefmt-core-utils
- Registry
- npm
What is MAL-2026-14031?
MAL-2026-14031 is a malicious package in datefmt-core-utils, published on 14 Aug 2026.
Official description
The package advertises itself as a date-formatting utility but ships a postinstall.js that npm auto-executes on install via scripts.postinstall. postinstall.js opens a TCP connection to the hardcoded remote 8.135.48.40:4444 and wires /bin/bash stdio to that socket, giving the remote endpoint an interactive shell on the installer's machine. Three redundant methods are attempted (python3 pty.spawn, python3 subprocess, and Node net+child_process.spawn of '/bin/bash -i'). The index.js date-formatting code is a cover story unrelated to the postinstall payload.
What should I do about MAL-2026-14031?
Remove the package from your dependencies and lockfiles, then rotate any secrets on machines where it was installed.