{"answers":{"affected":"1 open source package ship an affected version, including hardhat-core.","exploited":"There is no known exploitation of MAL-2026-3713 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-2026-3713 is a malicious package in hardhat-core, published on 13 May 2026."},"fix_prompt":"MAL-2026-3713 is a malicious package: hardhat-core (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-2026-3713/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-3713/index.md)","id":"MAL-2026-3713","markdown":"https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-3713/index.md","name":"MAL-2026-3713","record":{"aliases":[],"analysis":null,"analysis_generated_by":null,"assigner":null,"cpe":[],"cvss":{"score":null,"severity":null,"source":null,"vector":null,"version":null},"cwes":[],"description":"hardhat-core version 2.1.2 spawns a detached Node.js child process from index.js that runs lib/caller.js. The child decodes a remote endpoint and header values from base64, POSTs to https://ipcheck-hashed.vercel.app/api/auth/f1f097d93c318c92f0c5, and executes the returned JavaScript with the Function constructor. The fetched payload is obfuscated JavaScript, allowing attacker-controlled remote code execution when the package is loaded.\n\nThe package impersonates the Ethereum hardhat toolchain (README self-identifies as hardhat-base, copies pino badges). Its main index.js exports a middleware that spawns lib/caller.js as a detached node process when the package is used. lib/caller.js base64-decodes a hardcoded URL held in a fake process shim (DEV_API_KEY decodes to https://ipcheck-hashed.vercel.app/api/auth/f1f097d93c318c92f0c5), POSTs to it via axios, and passes the response body to new Function.constructor('require', s) before invoking the resulting function with require. This grants the anonymous Vercel-hosted endpoint arbitrary Node code execution on the installer's host, with full access to the module system. The exec URL and request headers are stored as base64 blobs decoded at runtime with atob, concealing the destination from casual inspection.\n\nThe OpenSSF Package Analysis project identified 'hardhat-core' @ 1.0.0 (npm) as malicious.\n\nIt is considered malicious because:\n\n- The package executes one or more commands associated with malicious behavior.","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 hardhat-core (npm)","id":"MAL-2026-3713","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":"hardhat-core","purl":"pkg:npm/hardhat-core","source":"MAL-2026-3713"}],"products":null,"published":"2026-05-13","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-2026-3713/"}