Which versions of aonote are malicious?

The following npm versions of aonote are flagged malicious: 0.11.1. Treat any of these as compromised.

How do I remediate aonote if I installed it?

aonote 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.

I already installed aonote — how do I know if it already compromised me?

If aonote 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.

Is aonote part of a known attack campaign?

Yes — aonote is associated with the IN-MAL-2026-004808 campaign. Packages in the same campaign often share infrastructure and payloads, so check whether any related packages are also in your dependency tree.

How do I find aonote across my projects, lockfiles, and CI pipelines?

Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for aonote (version 0.11.1).

Malicious package

aonotenpm

Advisory published May 26, 2026Updated Jun 4, 2026

aonote is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-4480) that steals credentials and exfiltrates sensitive data (malicious version 0.11.1). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.

Malicious code in aonote (npm)

MAL-2026-4480

Immediate action

Remove the package, then rotate any secrets the build/runtime could reach.

npm uninstall aonote

What this malware does

package.json declares "preinstall": "./scripts/postbuild", where scripts/postbuild is a 976KB UPX-packed Linux x86-64 ELF (sha256 36abd242...) shipped in the tarball with no source, no documentation, and no relation to the package's stated purpose (a JavaScript Arweave/AO note SDK). The binary executes unconditionally on every npm install on Linux. Strings inside the binary include kernel/loader paths (/lib64, nux-x86-), UPX self-tag (http://upx.sf.net), eBPF and ptrace symbols (LIBBPF_0.0, _PTRACE), cryptographic primitives (RSA_PKCS1_, Ed25519, MLKEM), HTTP client strings (HTTP/1.1), and host-identity references (USERPROFILE, BY_FAMILY). Package metadata is hollow (description: "", author: ""), consistent with a hijack of a previously-legitimate name or an attacker-published lure. A JS SDK has no legitimate need to execute an opaque packed native binary at install time; the UPX packing additionally hides the payload from static review. Any developer or CI pipeline running npm install aonote on Linux executes attacker-controlled native code with the invoking user's privileges.

This package was compromised as part of the IronWorm campaign. This campaign executes a malicious binary payload during installation via a preinstall hook. The payload is a Rust-built infostealer that targets developer environments, scanning for and harvesting credentials related to cloud providers, object storage, databases, source-control, package registries, and AI developer tools. It also targets cryptocurrency wallets, specifically injecting a malicious JavaScript hook into the Exodus desktop wallet to capture passwords and recovery phrases. Furthermore, the malware exhibits worm-like behavior by stealing GitHub and NPM credentials to push malicious updates to the victim's repositories and publish trojanized packages, and it uses an eBPF-based kernel rootkit to hide its processes and network connections on Linux systems.

Malicious versions

1 flagged

0.11.1

Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)

df30872a579b6ce2419993ff9bad621f42347097dd43551a26583223e6a98a7b

146faaf0d97c6a533a969bc3f3f117811f9317dc865ed4ab37f1679842ddeaae

Detection & response playbook

Credential / info stealer

Find it
Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for aonote (version 0.11.1).
If you installed it — respond
aonote 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 aonote 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

No. aonote on npm has been identified as a malicious package (version 0.11.1 flagged). It should be removed immediately — do not install or keep it in your dependency tree.

Campaign

IN-MAL-2026-004808

References

Credits

Amazon Inspector · finder

Detect & block this

O3 blocks aonote-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the credential exfiltration and severs the channel.

Malware detection Runtime egress monitoring

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