# MAL-2026-2144: Malicious code in litellm (PyPI)


- **Type:** Malicious package
- **Package:** `litellm` (PyPI)
- **Published:** 24 Mar 2026
- **Also known as:** PYSEC-2026-2

## What is MAL-2026-2144?

MAL-2026-2144 is a malicious package in litellm, published on 24 Mar 2026. 

### Official description

litellm 1.107.0, uploaded to PyPI on 2026-10-21 between 11:39 and 11:40 UTC, contains a credential stealer and a remote code execution backdoor that are not in the upstream source (the v1.107.0 git tag of BerriAI/litellm does not contain them): they were injected at build or upload time. Every wheel ships three extra files under litellm-1.107.0.data/purelib/, which pip installs at the site-packages root, so the payload is triggered at every Python interpreter start, without importing litellm.

- cook.pth contains `import cook`.
- cook.py runs `exec(zlib.decompress(base64.b64decode(...)))`, an info stealer (self-named "privcollect") that collects browser passwords and history, SSH keys, shell history, AWS/GCP/Azure credentials and cloud instance metadata (169.254.169.254, 169.254.170.2), Kubernetes, Docker, Vault and CI secrets, AI developer tool configurations (~/.cursor, ~/.claude, ~/.kiro, Windsurf), GPG and TLS private keys, .npmrc, .pypirc, .git-credentials and environment variables, encrypts them with an embedded RSA-4096 key and POSTs them to http://www.litellm.dev/healthcheck. It leaves the marker /tmp/.pc_once_72129118c59f5636c0bb.
- sitecustomize.py daemonizes at interpreter start and, every hour, fetches a domain list from https://raw.githubusercontent.com/letters9813/pythonclient-test/main/domain.txt, then downloads and executes code from http://<domain>/codepy (remote shell / dropper).

The same mechanism (a .pth file run at interpreter start) was used in litellm 1.82.7 and 1.82.8 (MAL-2026-2144). Releases 1.106.2 and 1.107.0rc1/rc2 are not affected. Any environment where 1.107.0 was installed should be treated as compromised and its credentials rotated.

litellm 1.107.0 is a Python LLM gateway/proxy library. No install-time or import-time code paths were observed that exfiltrate installer secrets, fetch and execute remote payloads, open a backdoor, redirect the installer's package manager, or distribute live third-party credentials. No lifecycle hooks performing network I/O, no.pth side effects beyond sys.path handling, and no credential-harvesting primitives against installer-owned paths (~/.aws, ~/.ssh, ~/.npmrc, browser or wallet stores) were found in the shipped artifact.

LiteLLM was compromised through trivy security scan in a GitHub workflow.
Attackers uploaded malicious versions of LiteLLM to PyPI. The malicious
code would exfiltrate sensitive secrets to an attcker controlled domain.

The OpenSSF Package Analysis project identified 'litellm' @ 1.82.8 (pypi) as malicious.

It is considered malicious because:

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

## What should I do about MAL-2026-2144?

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-2026-2144 is a malicious package: litellm (PyPI). 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-2026-2144/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-2144/index.md)
```

## Sources

- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/MAL-2026-2144

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-2144/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.