require-i18nextnpm
Advisory published Updated
require-i18next is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-14052) that steals credentials and exfiltrates sensitive data (malicious versions 20.0.0, 21.0.0). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.
Malicious code in require-i18next (npm)
What this malware does
The package's preinstall.js reads a hex-encoded command string from preinstall.json, decodes it with Buffer.from(hex, 'hex'), and passes the result to child_process.exec during npm install. The decoded payload is a curl command that POSTs the installer's whoami, current working directory, hostname, and the contents of /etc/passwd to https://eousft8gflamm91.m.pipedream.net. The name resembles the legitimate i18next ecosystem but the package's only observed behavior is install-time data exfiltration to an attacker-controlled Pipedream webhook, with the payload obfuscated as hex in a sibling JSON file to evade inspection of the JS.
The OpenSSF Package Analysis project identified 'require-i18next' @ 20.0.0 (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
Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for require-i18next (2 malicious versions).
If you installed it — respond
require-i18next 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 require-i18next 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
- OpenSSF: Package Analysis · finder
Detect & block this
O3 blocks require-i18next-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the credential exfiltration and severs the channel.