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Malicious package

publish-poc-test3npm

Advisory published Updated

publish-poc-test3 is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-18324) that steals credentials and exfiltrates sensitive data (malicious versions 1.0.15, 1.0.18, 1.0.19…). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.

Malicious code in publish-poc-test3 (npm)

MAL-2026-18324
Immediate action
Remove the package, then rotate any secrets the build/runtime could reach.
npm uninstall publish-poc-test3

What this malware does

The package's postinstall lifecycle script creates a temporary directory, writes a fabricated package.json whose name is 'publish-poc-found-<random-hex>' (random suffix derived via 'openssl rand -hex 2'), and then invokes 'npm publish' from that directory. The literal string 'npm publish' is reconstructed at runtime by concatenating three fragments ('np', 'm pu', 'blish') through printf, specifically to prevent manifest and string scanners from matching the command. The publish runs against the public npm registry using whatever npm authentication context the installing environment currently has (an _authToken from ~/.npmrc, NPM_TOKEN / NODE_AUTH_TOKEN in the environment, or an active CI publish identity), so running 'npm install' of this package on a developer workstation or CI host that holds publish rights causes a new attacker-named package to be published under the installer's npm identity. The combination of credential abuse at install time, randomized attacker-chosen package naming, and deliberate obfuscation of the exact command performing the publish is characteristic registry self-propagation / worm behavior.

Malicious versions

7 flagged
1.0.151.0.181.0.191.0.211.0.221.0.261.0.27

Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)

0e68efd8003626562d8bdc2d5d3df97b9f4d876a63571038d8ac813da516851c
17ed061cc2981149c8777982d072a5209edb74a870af8f8af2b524d7f7f1a185
4001a75b24abfa181a10e5d40931194f254304fcf5fda554488d3c242cc5db85
8ac06791d61a7ac29d00c3febfba325c7e2fe98b8dc4804d522644695f1a8466
adb3a005f2e2780f849662a8314ad7fc57ed7fb9f2648b71a3857a5de9c4debf
b5368db720474af1decca74b6232508e5c180df80abb4c6a4c2a3e5f4b459e21
bbce58a5e855198cf4d8c8e1b0ec5175fb83cc1054dd28aa26bab3566a334f79

Detection & response playbook

Credential / info stealer
  1. Find it

    Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for publish-poc-test3 (7 malicious versions).

  2. If you installed it — respond

    publish-poc-test3 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.

  3. Did it already run?

    If publish-poc-test3 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. publish-poc-test3 on npm has been identified as a malicious package (versions 1.0.15, 1.0.18, 1.0.19, 1.0.21, 1.0.22, 1.0.26, 1.0.27 flagged). It should be removed immediately — do not install or keep it in your dependency tree.

Campaign

IN-MAL-2026-021779IN-MAL-2026-021776IN-MAL-2026-021772IN-MAL-2026-021777IN-MAL-2026-021783IN-MAL-2026-021778IN-MAL-2026-021773

References

Credits

  • Amazon Inspector · finder

Detect & block this

O3 blocks publish-poc-test3-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the credential exfiltration and severs the channel.

Explore

publish-poc-test3 (npm) malicious package — MAL-2026-18324 | O3 Security