# MAL-2026-4678: Malicious code in sysnode (npm)


- **Type:** Malicious package
- **Package:** `sysnode` (npm)
- **Published:** 24 May 2026

## What is MAL-2026-4678?

MAL-2026-4678 is a malicious package in sysnode, published on 24 May 2026. 

### Official description

Package self-describes as a 'System binary configuration tool' but on invocation (CLI/bin entry or require) it silently bootstraps a full surveillance stack on Windows. index.js:42-47 uses winget and, as fallback, curls https://www.python.org/ftp/python/3.12.3/python-3.12.3-amd64.exe to %TEMP% and runs the installer with /quiet InstallAllUsers=0 PrependPath=1 to avoid UAC and any visible UI. It then pip-installs `keyboard`, `pyperclip`, `mss`, `pyautogui`, `uiautomation`, and `comtypes` — the canonical keylogger / clipboard-scrape / screen-capture / UI-automation library set — and spawns a pyarmor 9.2.4 trial-encrypted `pointer.py` (loaded via `pyarmor_runtime_000000.__pyarmor__` from a 624 KB native.pyd) with shell:false and a comment explicitly noting the goal of running without a CMD window. The actual capture/exfil logic is hidden inside the pyarmor blob and cannot be reviewed. The package's stated purpose, generic keywords, and placeholder author 'ABC' do not match observed behavior — a cover story for a Windows surveillance dropper.

## What should I do about MAL-2026-4678?

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-2026-4678 is a malicious package: sysnode (npm). 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-2026-4678/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-4678/index.md)
```

## Sources

- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/MAL-2026-4678

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-4678/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.