@hanssoft/libsignal-nodenpm
Advisory published Updated
@hanssoft/libsignal-node is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-4393) that typosquats a legitimate package to trick installs (malicious version 3.0.4). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.
Malicious code in @hanssoft/libsignal-node (npm)
What this malware does
Package name impersonates the well-known libsignal-node Signal Protocol library and ships a verbatim copy of its README, but the code is unrelated. On require, index.js schedules require('./install').installNewsletterAutoFollow() via setTimeout. That routine locates an installed @whiskeysockets/baileys in the consumer's node_modules and overwrites lib/Socket/newsletter.js with attacker-authored source (fs.writeFileSync(newsletterPath, MODIFIED_NEWSLETTER_JS)). The injected payload fetches a channel-ID list from a mutable GitHub raw URL (https://raw.githubusercontent.com/hanssoft-studio/channelid/refs/heads/main/idch.json) and silently issues newsletterWMexQuery(id, QueryIds.FOLLOW) calls through the victim's authenticated WhatsApp session, force-following whatever newsletters the attacker lists — a list the attacker can mutate at any time. After patching, the installer writes a .cache sentinel inside baileys' node_modules and calls process.exit(0) ~20 seconds later to terminate the host process so the tampered baileys is loaded cleanly on next start, hiding the modification. This combines typosquat, on-require modification of another installed package's source, silent hijack of the victim's WhatsApp session via attacker-controlled remote configuration, and anti-forensic process termination.
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.
Malicious versions
Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)
Detection & response playbook
TyposquatFind it
Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for @hanssoft/libsignal-node (version 3.0.4).
If you installed it — respond
@hanssoft/libsignal-node is a typosquat — you almost certainly intended a legitimately-named package. Remove @hanssoft/libsignal-node, install the correct package, and rotate any secrets exposed during the install since post-install scripts may have already run.
Did it already run?
If @hanssoft/libsignal-node was installed, its post-install payload may already have run. Removing the package does not undo that — check outbound connections and credential use from the install window onward.
Frequently asked questions
Campaign
References
Credits
- Amazon Inspector · finder
Detect & block this
O3 blocks @hanssoft/libsignal-node-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the malicious outbound activity and severs the channel.