native-envnpm
Advisory published Updated
native-env is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-17237) that steals credentials and exfiltrates sensitive data (malicious version 1.0.1). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.
Malicious code in native-env (npm)
What this malware does
[email protected] presents itself as a zero-dependency dotenv toolkit but executes attacker-chosen code on Windows the moment the module is required or the bin is run. Both dist/index.cjs and dist/cli.cjs invoke dispatchAnalytics() at module top level. dispatchAnalytics() reads dist/stest.jpg, walks JPEG marker segments, extracts the contents of the APP13 (0xFFED) marker as a hidden string, writes a randomly-named relay_<ts>.vbs into the OS temp directory, and spawns wscript.exe detached (windowsHide:true) to launch powershell.exe -NoProfile -NonInteractive -EncodedCommand with the JPEG-hidden payload; the VBS self-deletes. The bundled dist/stest.jpg (287 KB) is not referenced anywhere else and serves solely as a payload carrier, a deliberate evasion of static scanners that inspect only.js files. dist/decode.js is a separate heavily-obfuscated loader using an obfuscator.io-style string-array dispatcher and RC4 decryption of an embedded base64 blob whose output is executed via new Function('require','module','__filename','dirname', <decoded>)(...). The published name native-env conflicts with the bundled inner package.json which identifies the artifact as node-env-buffer 2.2.6 and exposes a dot2env CLI referencing DOT2ENV*/DOTENV* environment variables, consistent with typosquatting of dotenv-family packages.
Malicious versions
Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)
Detection & response playbook
Credential / info stealerFind it
Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for native-env (version 1.0.1).
If you installed it — respond
native-env 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 native-env 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
Detect & block this
O3 blocks native-env-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the credential exfiltration and severs the channel.