MAL-2026-14032 Malicious code in datefmt-simple-utils (npm)
Malicious package
Published
MAL-2026-14032 is a malicious package: datefmt-simple-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-2026-14032/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-14032/index.md)
- Package
- datefmt-simple-utils
- Registry
- npm
What is MAL-2026-14032?
MAL-2026-14032 is a malicious package in datefmt-simple-utils, published on 14 Aug 2026.
Official description
datefmt-simple-utils presents itself as a date-formatting utility, but its package.json declares scripts.postinstall="node postinstall.js", which fires automatically on npm install. postinstall.js connects a TCP socket to the hardcoded remote host 8.135.48.40 on port 4444 and attaches an interactive /bin/bash to that socket, giving the remote endpoint full command execution on the installer's machine. Three fallback techniques target the same host: a python3 pty.spawn reverse shell, a python3 subprocess-based variant, and a Node net.connect + spawn('/bin/bash', ['-i']) variant. The advertised date-formatting purpose is a cover story; no such functionality is wired into the install-time code path.
What should I do about MAL-2026-14032?
Remove the package from your dependencies and lockfiles, then rotate any secrets on machines where it was installed.