Which versions of merpe are malicious?

The following PyPI versions of merpe are flagged malicious: 3.2.1, 3.3.1. Treat any of these as compromised.

How do I remediate merpe if I installed it?

merpe 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.

I already installed merpe — how do I know if it already compromised me?

If merpe was ever installed, its post-install/runtime payload may have already executed. O3's L7 egress monitoring and runtime eBPF sensors detect the credential exfiltration or command-and-control callback after install and block the malicious outbound channel, so you catch and contain the actual compromise — not just the presence of the package.

Is merpe part of a known attack campaign?

Yes — merpe is associated with the RLMA-2025-02581, GENERIC-standard-pypi-install-pentest, RLUA-2026-00516 campaign. Packages in the same campaign often share infrastructure and payloads, so check whether any related packages are also in your dependency tree.

How do I find merpe across my projects, lockfiles, and CI pipelines?

Scan your lockfiles (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, yarn.lock, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, etc.) and build artifacts for merpe (2 malicious versions). O3 Security's supply-chain scanner checks every dependency against known-malicious package intelligence at install time and in CI, flagging merpe across your stack and pipelines.

Malicious package

merpePyPI

Malicious code in merpe (PyPI) Remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.

MAL-2025-4226

Immediate action

Remove the package, then rotate any secrets the build/runtime could reach.

pip uninstall merpe

What this malware does

Installing the package or importing the module exfiltrates basic information about the host, and the package has no other purpose.

Category: PROBABLY_PENTEST - Packages looking like typical pentest packages, but also anything that looks like testing, exploring pre-prepared kits, research & co, with clearly low-harm possibilities.

Campaign: GENERIC-standard-pypi-install-pentest

Reasons (based on the campaign):

The package contains code to exfiltrate basic data from the system, like IP or username. It has a limited risk.
The package overrides the install command in setup.py to execute malicious code during installation.

Malicious versions

2 flagged

3.2.13.3.1

Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)

8daaa684e09862865b454ccc812c3d1b7c1bc7ac0c628bae8b3db5c0fa957f15

c0777af2018d0dff9081b8690e1daab52a7006a934c259514f1c1f5b6a347f8c

faca94094d9aee6f6c1cb44ef0429d261258fa7b12ee68d92a93c80054638561

d8e305a9b32ee73771c81151cb597a6fa874f7363ac328748e12a6203153448c

7bddd33bde8402010d3da1b30a4ebffcddfb8b1fdcf71e048ca24db81f410ebc

Detection & response playbook

Credential / info stealer

Find it
Scan your lockfiles (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, yarn.lock, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, etc.) and build artifacts for merpe (2 malicious versions). O3 Security's supply-chain scanner checks every dependency against known-malicious package intelligence at install time and in CI, flagging merpe across your stack and pipelines.
If you installed it — respond
merpe 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 merpe was ever installed, its post-install/runtime payload may have already executed. O3's L7 egress monitoring and runtime eBPF sensors detect the credential exfiltration or command-and-control callback after install and block the malicious outbound channel, so you catch and contain the actual compromise — not just the presence of the package.
How O3 protects you
O3 blocks merpe before install through its supply-chain scanner, and if it has already run, detects and severs the exfiltration or C2 callback at runtime through L7 egress monitoring and eBPF.

Frequently asked questions

No. merpe on PyPI has been identified as a malicious package (versions 3.2.1, 3.3.1 flagged). It should be removed immediately — do not install or keep it in your dependency tree.

Campaign

RLMA-2025-02581GENERIC-standard-pypi-install-pentestRLUA-2026-00516

References

bad-packages.kam193.eu

Credits

Kamil Mańkowski (kam193)
ReversingLabs · finder

Detect & block this

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

Malware detection Runtime egress monitoring