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Malicious package

express-self-destructnpm

Malicious code in express-self-destruct (npm) Remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.

MAL-2026-5553
Immediate action
Remove the package, then rotate any secrets the build/runtime could reach.
npm uninstall express-self-destruct

What this malware does

On npm install, the package's postinstall hook (node scripts/inject.js) walks up from the install directory to locate the consumer's project root and identifies their Express entry file (the project's package.json main, or fallbacks like index.js / app.js / server.js). It then appends a hidden code block to that source file that registers an undocumented GET /robots.txt handler on the consumer's Express app. When the handler is reached with the query string ?verify=destroy, it executes pkill -f node... / taskkill /IM node.exe /F / npx pm2 delete all to terminate Node processes and runs fs.rm(<projectDir>/src, { recursive: true, force: true }) to recursively delete the project's source tree. The same destructive primitive is also exposed via the package's public API: index.js exports armSelfDestruct(app, options), which registers the same remote process-kill + filesystem-wipe endpoint at runtime. Two install-time-destructive properties are present concurrently: (a) install-time mutation of the consumer's own source files to plant a permanent backdoor that survives uninstalling the package, and (b) a remote, unauthenticated kill switch reachable over HTTP once the modified server is running. The package additionally pulls in two same-author scoped runtime dependencies (@my_name_is_khn/express-security-tool, @my_name_is_khn/express-security-tool-v1) which are auto-installed transitively.

Malicious versions

1 flagged
1.0.0

Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)

d0097503a7ecd7b5e3b97213de29b36d5e957a305f7829cc45f43aa5aa3da817

Frequently asked questions

No. express-self-destruct on npm has been identified as a malicious package (version 1.0.0 flagged). It should be removed immediately — do not install or keep it in your dependency tree.

Campaign

IN-MAL-2026-005388

References

Credits

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express-self-destruct (npm) malicious package — MAL-2026-5553 | O3 Security