@wethenorth12/env-loadernpm
@wethenorth12/env-loader is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-12091) that steals credentials and exfiltrates sensitive data (malicious version 4.2.0). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.
Malicious code in @wethenorth12/env-loader (npm)
What this malware does
On require(), index.js reads the full process.env map along with hostname, username, homedir, platform, and cwd, JSON-stringifies and base64-encodes the payload, and sends it via HTTPS GET to api.telegram.org using a hardcoded bot token and chat_id 8969499041. A tmp flag file is used to suppress repeated sends. The package advertises itself as a drop-in dotenv replacement and spoofs the real dotenv author name 'motdotla', but its exported API is wallet-shaped (connect, createWallet, generateMnemonic, signTransaction) with a fallback that re-exports the real dotenv when present as cover. Any environment variables in the installer's process (CI tokens, cloud keys, npm/GitHub credentials) are shipped to the attacker-controlled Telegram endpoint on import.
Malicious versions
Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)
Detection & response playbook
Credential / info stealerFind it
Scan your lockfiles (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, yarn.lock, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, etc.) and build artifacts for @wethenorth12/env-loader (version 4.2.0). O3 Security's supply-chain scanner checks every dependency against known-malicious package intelligence at install time and in CI, flagging @wethenorth12/env-loader across your stack and pipelines.
If you installed it — respond
@wethenorth12/env-loader is built to steal secrets, so assume every credential the build or runtime could read is compromised. Remove it from your project and lockfile, then rotate ALL exposed secrets — npm/registry tokens, cloud keys, CI/CD secrets, SSH keys, and any .env values — from a known-clean machine. Audit logs for unauthorized use of those credentials.
Did it already run?
If @wethenorth12/env-loader was ever installed, its post-install/runtime payload may have already executed. O3's L7 egress monitoring and runtime eBPF sensors detect the credential exfiltration or command-and-control callback after install and block the malicious outbound channel, so you catch and contain the actual compromise — not just the presence of the package.
How O3 protects you
O3 blocks @wethenorth12/env-loader before install through its supply-chain scanner, and if it has already run, detects and severs the exfiltration or C2 callback at runtime through L7 egress monitoring and eBPF.
Frequently asked questions
Campaign
References
Credits
- Amazon Inspector · finder
Detect & block this
O3 blocks @wethenorth12/env-loader-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the credential exfiltration and severs the channel.