tabbablesnpm
Advisory published Updated
tabbables is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-15524) that executes malicious code on install (malicious version 45.0.0). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.
Malicious code in tabbables (npm)
What this malware does
package.json at line 11 declares a dependency whose key equals the package's own name (tabbables) and whose value is the raw HTTPS URL https://repo.securityctrl.com/tabbables rather than a registry version range. On npm install, npm fetches whatever tarball that URL currently serves and installs it, executing any lifecycle scripts it contains, with no version pin, no integrity/hash check, and no registry provenance. The shipped index.js is an inert stub, so the manifest URL is the sole payload-delivery mechanism; the tarball's behavior can be changed at any time by whoever controls repo.securityctrl.com. The self-referential dependency key also produces a dependency-confusion shape (an implausibly high 45.0.0 version competing with any internal package of the same name).
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
Malicious packageFind it
Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for tabbables (version 45.0.0).
If you installed it — respond
Remove tabbables from your project and lockfile, then assume any secrets accessible to the build or runtime were exposed: rotate API keys, tokens, and credentials, and audit for unexpected outbound activity or persistence.
Did it already run?
If tabbables 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 tabbables-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the malicious outbound activity and severs the channel.