kecak256npm
kecak256 is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-5342) 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 kecak256 (npm)
What this malware does
kecak256 is a typosquat of the popular keccak256 package (one c dropped) that ships a credential-stealing payload executed automatically on install.
The package spoofs the legitimate keccak256 project — author "Miguel Mota", matching description, README, and keywords — and includes a benign decoy hash implementation (kecak256.js) as main.
package.json defines scripts.postinstall: node init.m.js && echo DONE, and declares archiver, axios, and form-data as runtime dependencies (the exfiltration toolchain).
init.m.js (launcher): RC4 + base64 string obfuscation. On Windows it spawns a hidden PowerShell (-WindowStyle Hidden -ExecutionPolicy Bypass) that Start-Process-launches upchk.m.js under node; on other platforms it spawns node upchk.m.js detached ({detached:true, windowsHide:true, stdio:'ignore'}) and calls child.unref() to orphan the process.
upchk.m.js (stage 2, ~63 KB obfuscated): performs an isAdmin() privilege check, targets browser/credential stores (observed string targets include Chrome Login Data, keystore, cc_appkey), archives collected data into npmupdate.zip via archiver, and exfiltrates it in 5 MB chunks via axios + FormData to a runtime-decoded C2 URL (uploadFileChunks(file, sUrl, 5MB)).
Package name kecak256 is a single-character deletion of the widely-used keccak256 package by Miguel Mota, and package.json sets author.name to 'Miguel Mota' — matching the legitimate package's maintainer identity. The code in kecak256.js is a verbatim copy of the legitimate keccak256 implementation: it exports a clean keccak256() function with no lifecycle scripts, no network I/O, no obfuscation, no credential reads, and no eval/exec. At this version the package is functionally benign, but the name-confusion shape combined with author impersonation is a supply-chain hygiene concern: developers who mistype keccak256 resolve to this package, and the namespace is positioned for a future malicious update under an impersonated identity. Routing for human review since name-similarity judgments are subjective and no installer-harm payload is present in this version.
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
Scan your lockfiles (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, yarn.lock, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, etc.) and build artifacts for kecak256 (4 malicious versions). O3 Security's supply-chain scanner checks every dependency against known-malicious package intelligence at install time and in CI, flagging kecak256 across your stack and pipelines.
If you installed it — respond
kecak256 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 kecak256 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 kecak256 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
- Hugo Guillaume (Konvu) · finder
Detect & block this
O3 blocks kecak256-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the credential exfiltration and severs the channel.