# MAL-2026-17799: Malicious code in wallet-balance-scanner (RubyGems)


- **Type:** Malicious package
- **Package:** `wallet-balance-scanner` (RubyGems)
- **Published:** 11 Oct 2026

## What is MAL-2026-17799?

MAL-2026-17799 is a malicious package in wallet-balance-scanner, published on 11 Oct 2026. 

### Official description

The gem declares a native extension at ext/wallet_balance_scanner/extconf.rb but ships no C/C++/Rust sources; the extconf.rb is itself the payload rather than a build script, and runs automatically during `gem install`. The script decodes a base64 blob and launches it inside a detached, delayed forked process which opens a TCPSocket to the hardcoded bare-IP C2 45.138.12.177:8089 and pipes /bin/sh to it, handing a shell on the installer's host to the operator of that endpoint. Execution is gated by developer-workstation heuristics: it checks for ~/.ssh, ~/.gitconfig, ~/.npmrc, ~/.gem/credentials and ~/.bundle, requires host uptime over 1800 seconds, and bails out on CI, ephemeral hostnames, generated usernames, and known analysis/sandbox path prefixes, so the backdoor fires only on real developer machines. The lib/wallet_balance_scanner.rb entry and README (which refers to an unrelated `bitcoin_rpc_lite` library) are stubs with no relation to the declared wallet-scanning purpose, consistent with a cover-story gem whose only functional component is the install-time reverse shell.

The OpenSSF Package Analysis project identified 'wallet-balance-scanner' @ 0.9.1 (rubygems) as malicious.

It is considered malicious because:

- The package executes one or more commands associated with malicious behavior.

## What should I do about MAL-2026-17799?

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-2026-17799 is a malicious package: wallet-balance-scanner (RubyGems). 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-2026-17799/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-17799/index.md)
```

## Sources

- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/MAL-2026-17799

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-17799/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.