{"answers":{"affected":"1 open source package ship an affected version, including cwao.","exploited":"There is no known exploitation of MAL-2026-4544 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-2026-4544 is a malicious package in cwao, published on 26 May 2026."},"fix_prompt":"MAL-2026-4544 is a malicious package: cwao (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-2026-4544/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-4544/index.md)","id":"MAL-2026-4544","markdown":"https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-4544/index.md","name":"MAL-2026-4544","record":{"aliases":[],"analysis":null,"analysis_generated_by":null,"assigner":null,"cpe":[],"cvss":{"score":null,"severity":null,"source":null,"vector":null,"version":null},"cwes":[],"description":"package.json declares \"preinstall\": \"./vendor/setup\", which directly executes a 976,568-byte packed Linux x86 ELF binary shipped in the tarball. The README advertises the package as a pure-JS CosmWasm/Arweave AO SDK and never mentions a native binary. The binary is opaque (mostly non-printable, UPX-style packing) with no shipped source, no binding.gyp, no node-gyp/prebuild-install manifest, no version pin and no hash verification. Embedded string fragments include LIBBPF, PTRACE, /proc, HTTP/1.1, https://, RSA, and USERPROFILE — capabilities (kernel BPF, process tracing, outbound HTTPS, credential paths) entirely unrelated to a JavaScript SDK. Every installer running `npm install cwao` on Linux executes this attacker-controlled native code with the user's privileges before any JavaScript loads. This matches the generic-binary-runner-dropper pattern: undocumented binary, purpose mismatch with the advertised package function, opaque payload, no integrity check, direct lifecycle invocation.\n\nThis package was compromised as part of the IronWorm campaign. This campaign executes a malicious binary payload during installation via a preinstall hook. The payload is a Rust-built infostealer that targets developer environments, scanning for and harvesting credentials related to cloud providers, object storage, databases, source-control, package registries, and AI developer tools. It also targets cryptocurrency wallets, specifically injecting a malicious JavaScript hook into the Exodus desktop wallet to capture passwords and recovery phrases. Furthermore, the malware exhibits worm-like behavior by stealing GitHub and NPM credentials to push malicious updates to the victim's repositories and publish trojanized packages, and it uses an eBPF-based kernel rootkit to hide its processes and network connections on Linux systems.","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 cwao (npm)","id":"MAL-2026-4544","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":"cwao","purl":"pkg:npm/cwao","source":"MAL-2026-4544"}],"products":null,"published":"2026-05-26","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-2026-4544/"}