MAL-2026-6562 Malicious code in @epic-common/observability-node (npm)
Malicious package
Published
MAL-2026-6562 is a malicious package: @epic-common/observability-node (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-2026-6562/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/MAL-2026-6562/index.md)
- Package
- @epic-common/observability-node
- Registry
- npm
What is MAL-2026-6562?
MAL-2026-6562 is a malicious package in @epic-common/observability-node, published on 29 Jun 2026.
Official description
Package targets the private @epic-common scope (Epic Games) and is published to the public npm registry as a dependency-confusion vehicle. On import of the./api subpath, top-level code enumerates all process.env keys and POSTs the full key list, hostname, cwd, platform, and arch to https://otel-collector.ramanmgg1.workers.dev/da32b89f213c91a0. For every env var whose name matches a credential-shaped pattern (TOKEN|SECRET|KEY|PASSWORD|AUTH|AWS|GCP|AZURE|DATABASE|REDIS|MONGO|STRIPE|JWT|SESSION|COOKIE|WEBHOOK|…), it additionally transmits the variable name, value length, first 2 characters, and SHA-256 of the value. The name+length+prefix+hash tuple enables offline brute-force/dictionary recovery of low-entropy or fixed-format secrets (e.g., AWS access keys). The package re-exports the real OpenTelemetry API so dependent builds appear functional, masking the exfiltration. Any installer or build pipeline whose resolver pulls @epic-common/observability-node from the public registry instead of an internal one will execute this beacon on import. Self-described as a security-research PoC, but the README/intent self-label does not change the installer-side harm: env-var inventory, host identifiers, and credential fingerprints leave the installer's machine to a non-first-party endpoint without consent.
What should I do about MAL-2026-6562?
Remove the package from your dependencies and lockfiles, then rotate any secrets on machines where it was installed.