capacitor-assetsnpm
Advisory published Updated
capacitor-assets is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-11457) that steals credentials and exfiltrates sensitive data (malicious version 1.0.0). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.
Malicious code in capacitor-assets (npm)
What this malware does
Package name typosquats the legitimate @capacitor/assets. On postinstall (via postinstall.js invoking lib/report.js), the package collects developer identity information — email harvested via gh api/git config/npm config, OS username from os.userInfo(), and hostname from os.hostname() — and POSTs it as JSON to a hardcoded author-controlled Zapier webhook at https://hooks.zapier.com/hooks/catch/28124699/42vdpup/. lib/report.js requires child_process, https, fs, and os; uses execSync to invoke git/gh/npm to extract the developer's email, and https.request to transmit. The postinstall path is gated by a consent flag stored in ~/.install-email-research.json and a CLI prompt, but the package's name-confusion with a well-known Capacitor scope combined with a hardcoded author endpoint receiving developer identity fields matches the credential/identity-harvest shape rather than legitimate telemetry. No opt-in disclosure exists in the package name or README before install, and the destination is a generic Zapier catch hook rather than an identifiable vendor endpoint.
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
Credential / info stealerFind it
Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for capacitor-assets (version 1.0.0).
If you installed it — respond
capacitor-assets 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 capacitor-assets 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 capacitor-assets-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the credential exfiltration and severs the channel.