Which versions of chai-as-optimized are malicious?

Every published version of chai-as-optimized on npm is considered malicious. Remove the package entirely.

How do I remediate chai-as-optimized if I installed it?

chai-as-optimized 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.

I already installed chai-as-optimized — how do I know if it already compromised me?

If chai-as-optimized 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.

Is chai-as-optimized part of a known attack campaign?

Yes — chai-as-optimized is associated with the GHSA-g99c-rjxw-f6jg 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 chai-as-optimized across my projects, lockfiles, and CI pipelines?

Scan your lockfiles (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, yarn.lock, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, etc.) and build artifacts for chai-as-optimized (all published versions). O3 Security's supply-chain scanner checks every dependency against known-malicious package intelligence at install time and in CI, flagging chai-as-optimized across your stack and pipelines.

Malicious package

chai-as-optimizednpm

Malicious code in chai-as-optimized (npm) Remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.

MAL-2026-2895

Immediate action

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

npm uninstall chai-as-optimized

What this malware does

chai-as-optimized is a malicious npm package that when imported downloads a C2 dropper from https://api.npoint[.]io/0ac7efbc0b6b1a53b305 and executes it (similar to malware in to chai-await-test).

The package chai-as-optimized was found to contain malicious code.

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

all versions

Every published version of this package is considered malicious — remove it entirely.

Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)

838c65b4d08471333988eaebfdc666b60a9d9202e80c8190ed84c9a2ba5e620a

9aae79ba651c775fb9210d21e89a5fe445914455de8d8ac349099a9eb0e305f5

Detection & response playbook

Backdoor / remote access

Find it
Scan your lockfiles (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, yarn.lock, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, etc.) and build artifacts for chai-as-optimized (all published versions). O3 Security's supply-chain scanner checks every dependency against known-malicious package intelligence at install time and in CI, flagging chai-as-optimized across your stack and pipelines.
If you installed it — respond
chai-as-optimized 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 chai-as-optimized 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 chai-as-optimized 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

No. chai-as-optimized on npm has been identified as a malicious package (all published versions flagged). It should be removed immediately — do not install or keep it in your dependency tree.

Campaign

GHSA-g99c-rjxw-f6jg

References

Credits

Amazon Inspector · finder
indece · finder

Detect & block this

O3 blocks chai-as-optimized-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the C2 callback and severs the channel.

Malware detection Runtime egress monitoring