{"answers":{"affected":"1 open source package ship an affected version, including catwrestlingbird.","exploited":"There is no known exploitation of MAL-2026-16327 in the wild and no public exploit code.","fix":"Remove the package from your dependencies and lockfiles, then rotate any secrets on machines where it was installed.","what":"MAL-2026-16327 is a malicious package in catwrestlingbird, published on 21 Sep 2026."},"fix_prompt":"MAL-2026-16327 is a malicious package: catwrestlingbird (npm). Every version was published to cause harm.\n\nTask:\n1. Search this repository's dependency manifests and lockfiles for the package, including transitive dependencies.\n2. If it is present, remove it, regenerate the lockfile with the project's package manager, and replace whatever it was used for.\n3. List any CI runners, developer machines or containers that installed it, so their secrets can be rotated.\n4. If the package is not used anywhere, say so and change nothing.\n\nReference: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-16327/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-16327/index.md)","id":"MAL-2026-16327","markdown":"https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-16327/index.md","name":"MAL-2026-16327","record":{"aliases":[],"analysis":null,"analysis_generated_by":null,"assigner":null,"cpe":[],"cvss":{"score":null,"severity":null,"source":null,"vector":null,"version":null},"cwes":[],"description":"catwrestlingbird@1.0.0 declares a `postinstall` script (`node install.js`) that automatically runs on `npm install`. install.js collects installer host reconnaissance — hostname, username, platform/arch/OS release, network interfaces, a depth-3 listing of the current working directory, selected environment variables, and the output of `ss`/`netstat`, `arp`/`ip neigh`, and `ip route`/`route` — and POSTs the JSON payload to a hardcoded plain-HTTP endpoint at `http://192.168.4.216:3000/api/beacon`. install.js then spawns heartbeat.js as a detached, unref'd child process so it survives beyond install. heartbeat.js long-polls the same C2 every 60 seconds; on a `shell` task it upgrades to a WebSocket at `/ws/shell/\u003cbeacon_id\u003e/open`, spawns `/bin/sh`, pipes the shell's stdout/stderr back to the server as WebSocket frames, and writes inbound WebSocket frames into the shell's stdin — a fully remote-controlled interactive shell on the installer's host, gated only by a hardcoded `x-beacon-secret`. A `kill` response from the C2 rewrites the installer's package.json and package-lock.json to remove the package and recursively deletes the package directory, providing a remote self-destruct/anti-forensics path. A SHA-256 hashcash proof-of-work handshake against `/api/pow` gates the beacon. The package description is empty and no functionality is advertised to the installer.","ecosystems":["npm"],"exploits":{"exploitdb":null,"first_seen":null,"github_poc":null,"max_poc_stars":null,"metasploit":null,"nuclei":null,"refs":[],"tier":null},"has_fix":false,"headline":"Malicious code in catwrestlingbird (npm)","id":"MAL-2026-16327","indexable":true,"kev":null,"kind":"malicious","links":{"ecosystem":"npm","product":null,"products":[],"type":null,"year":"2026"},"n_packages":1,"n_references":null,"packages":[{"ecosystem":"npm","fixed":[],"introduced":[],"last_affected":[],"package":"catwrestlingbird","purl":"pkg:npm/catwrestlingbird","source":"MAL-2026-16327"}],"products":null,"published":"2026-09-21","related":[],"sources":[{"class":"attribution","licence":"Apache-2.0","name":"OpenSSF Malicious Packages","prefix":"MAL"}],"ssvc":{"automatable":null,"exploitation":null,"technical_impact":null},"state":null,"updated":null,"vendors":null},"summary":null,"url":"https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-16327/"}