zencleanerPyPI
Advisory published Updated
zencleaner is a confirmed malicious PyPI package (MAL-2026-17629) that executes malicious code on install (malicious versions 1.0.0, 1.0.3, 1.0.3.1). Do not install it — remove it immediately and rotate any exposed credentials.
Malicious code in zencleaner (PyPI)
What this malware does
When a license key is activated or deactivated in the local UI, zencleaner/webhook_logger.py posts the key, the PC name, the Windows user name and the client IP to a hardcoded Discord webhook, although the README says nothing is sent to the internet. 1.0.3 and 1.0.3.1 also look up the public IP through ipify.org and ifconfig.me. Separately, cleaner_system.py clears the Windows event logs, Security included, with wevtutil; a comment in that function reads "so forensic scanners report 0 entries". Nothing runs at install time. I read all three versions and did not run them.
Malicious versions
Detection & response playbook
Malicious packageFind it
Search your lockfiles and build artifacts for zencleaner (3 malicious versions).
If you installed it — respond
Remove zencleaner 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 zencleaner 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
Credits
- smiling-hyena · finder
Detect & block this
O3 blocks zencleaner-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.