@wizloft/harness-kernelnpm
Advisory published Updated
@wizloft/harness-kernel is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-14287) that opens a backdoor for remote access (malicious version 0.1.1-alpha.3). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.
Malicious code in @wizloft/harness-kernel (npm)
What this malware does
dist/index.js contains an obfuscated top-level async IIFE that executes on import. It queries Ethereum JSON-RPC endpoints (eth.drpc.org, eth.publicnode.com, ethereum-rpc.publicnode.com, and an Etherscan-like API) for the most recent transaction from a hardcoded marker address (0xa322E5f39aDC2490Ef6f0121063e358050D311D3080e), parses the transaction's to field into two IPv4 addresses, HTTP-fetches XOR-encrypted payloads from http://<ip>/0x/ls and http://<ip>:443/0x/cl, XOR-decrypts them, then executes the resulting JavaScript via eval(...) and a detached spawn('node', ['-e', <decrypted>], {detached:true}). The entire loader is packed with obfuscator.io-style transforms (hex _0x identifiers, rotating string array _0x240a, control-flow flattening) that conceal the network-fetch-and-exec chain behind benign-looking exports. On-chain C2 makes the exfil/RCE destination mutable and takedown-resistant; the payload contents are opaque and attacker-controlled.
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
Backdoor / remote accessFind it
Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for @wizloft/harness-kernel (version 0.1.1-alpha.3).
If you installed it — respond
@wizloft/harness-kernel establishes remote access, so treat any host that installed it as fully compromised. Isolate the machine, remove the package, rotate all credentials it could reach, and rebuild from a trusted image rather than cleaning in place — a backdoor may have planted additional persistence.
Did it already run?
If @wizloft/harness-kernel 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 @wizloft/harness-kernel-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the C2 callback and severs the channel.