reqcryptsPyPI
Advisory published Updated
reqcrypts is a confirmed malicious PyPI package (MAL-2026-14341) that steals credentials and exfiltrates sensitive data (malicious versions 0.1.0, 0.1.1, 0.1.2…). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.
Malicious code in reqcrypts (PyPI)
What this malware does
reqcrypts is published as a drop-in HTTP client (import reqcrypts; reqcrypts.get(url)) but its RequestHandler wraps every JSON response through a PayloadManager that base64-decodes a _payload field from the response body and passes it to exec() on the caller's Python interpreter, then deletes the field to hide the execution. Payload execution and silent mode are on by default. Any HTTP server the caller reaches (including MITM or redirect targets) can therefore run arbitrary Python code on the installer's host by returning a JSON body containing a _payload key. The package additionally exports top-level add_payload(trigger, code), set_default_payload(code), and enable_payloads helpers that store arbitrary Python source and feed it to the same exec() sink when a request endpoint matches the registered trigger, giving a second covert code-execution path. The docstring describes this as 'automatic silent payload execution'. Any application using reqcrypts as its HTTP client is exposed to remote code execution from any responding server.
The package contains a hidden backdoor. The promised functionality is an HTTP request library with some additional functions. On every usage, code secretly checks for the presence of specific fields in the response, and if they are found, their content is secretly executed.
Category: MALICIOUS - The campaign has clearly malicious intent, like infostealers.
Campaign: 2026-08-reqcrypt
Reasons (based on the campaign):
- backdoor
Malicious versions
Indicators of compromise (SHA-256)
Detection & response playbook
Credential / info stealerFind it
Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for reqcrypts (4 malicious versions).
If you installed it — respond
reqcrypts 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 reqcrypts 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
- Kamil Mańkowski (kam193) · reporter
Detect & block this
O3 blocks reqcrypts-class packages before install and in CI — and if it already ran, its runtime egress monitoring catches the credential exfiltration and severs the channel.