veterannpm
Advisory published Updated
veteran is a confirmed malicious npm package (MAL-2026-4703) that executes malicious code on install (malicious versions 1.0.3, 1.0.5, 1.0.11). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.
Malicious code in veteran (npm)
What this malware does
On npm install, the package's postinstall hook (install.js, registered via package.json line 10 "postinstall": "node install.js") downloads a platform-specific executable from https://laogou.us/download/veteran/v1.0.0/veteran_1.0.0_<platform>_<arch>.{tar.gz,zip} (install.js:13 const DOWNLOAD_BASE_URL = 'https://laogou.us/download/veteran'), extracts it via shell tar/unzip, chmod 0o755s it (install.js:165), and immediately executes it (install.js:170 execSync("${BIN_PATH}" version",...)). The download host laogou.us does not match the package's declared publisher/homepage (github.com/yongjie0203/veteran); the URL is not version-pinned to a hash or signature; no checksum or signature verification is performed on the fetched bytes; and source comments suggest the URL is meant to be swapped by future maintainers. The operator of laogou.us can therefore serve arbitrary native code to every installer, with the bytes executed under the installer's user on npm install. This matches the publisher-mismatched, unverified, mutable-host dropper pattern.
Malicious versions
Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)
Detection & response playbook
Malicious packageFind it
Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for veteran (3 malicious versions).
If you installed it — respond
Remove veteran 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 veteran 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 veteran-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.