gator-clientnpm
Advisory published Updated
gator-client is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-4569) that steals credentials and exfiltrates sensitive data (malicious version 9.9.11). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.
Malicious code in gator-client (npm)
What this malware does
On npm install (via scripts.install: node index.js) and on every require('gator-client'), lib/core.js collects os.userInfo().username, os.hostname(), and the basename of process.cwd(), then issues a dns.resolve4() query for lwgator.<user>.<host>.<cwd>.<ts>.oob.sl4x0.xyz, leaking installer host identifiers over DNS to an attacker-controlled out-of-band domain. The function name resolve4, the module names os/dns/process, and the C2 domain oob.sl4x0.xyz are stored as decimal byte arrays in lib/b02e30.js and lib/6ad264.js and decoded via String.fromCharCode at runtime (paired with hex-style identifiers like _0x5b3d) to evade naive string scanners. The package's advertised purpose ("Enterprise-grade utilities with enhanced validation and compatibility layer") is a cover story: src/ ships plausible-looking benign modules, but the only code reached from the install hook and main entry is the beacon. The author email [email protected] matches the exfil domain sl4x0.xyz, confirming attacker ownership of the receiving infrastructure. DNS-based exfiltration is specifically chosen to bypass HTTP egress filters that would otherwise block outbound POSTs.
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 gator-client (version 9.9.11).
If you installed it — respond
gator-client 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 gator-client 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
- ReversingLabs · finder
Detect & block this
O3 blocks gator-client-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the credential exfiltration and severs the channel.