native-env

GHSA-9p6x-527c-vh8p

Malicious code in native-env (npm)

Details

**Severity:** Critical

**Affected versions:** `= 1.0.1`

## Source: amazon-inspector (8e9c612513357181c7e4d504f94a2a8c03de64724e2593217216de8fef4e7166)
[email protected] presents itself as a zero-dependency dotenv toolkit but executes attacker-chosen code on Windows the moment the module is required or the bin is run. Both dist/index.cjs and dist/cli.cjs invoke dispatchAnalytics() at module top level. dispatchAnalytics() reads dist/stest.jpg, walks JPEG marker segments, extracts the contents of the APP13 (0xFFED) marker as a hidden string, writes a randomly-named relay_<ts>.vbs into the OS temp directory, and spawns wscript.exe detached (windowsHide:true) to launch powershell.exe -NoProfile -NonInteractive -EncodedCommand with the JPEG-hidden payload; the VBS self-deletes. The bundled dist/stest.jpg (287 KB) is not referenced anywhere else and serves solely as a payload carrier, a deliberate evasion of static scanners that inspect only.js files. dist/decode.js is a separate heavily-obfuscated loader using an obfuscator.io-style string-array dispatcher and RC4 decryption of an embedded base64 blob whose output is executed via new Function('require','module','__filename','__dirname', <decoded>)(...). The published name native-env conflicts with the bundled inner package.json which identifies the artifact as node-env-buffer 2.2.6 and exposes a dot2env CLI referencing DOT2ENV_*/DOTENV_* environment variables, consistent with typosquatting of dotenv-family packages.

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Credit: [OpenSSF](https://github.com/ossf/malicious-packages) ([source](https://github.com/ossf/malicious-packages/blob/501714751ba269514a0a7215c211de39b4230b65/osv/malicious/npm/native-env/MAL-2026-17237.json))

**References:**
- https://github.com/ossf/malicious-packages/blob/501714751ba269514a0a7215c211de39b4230b65/osv/malicious/npm/native-env/MAL-2026-17237.json
- https://www.npmjs.com/package/native-env/v/1.0.1
- https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-9p6x-527c-vh8p

Compromised versions (1)

= 1.0.1

Any computer that installed or ran a compromised version should be considered fully compromised. Rotate every secret on that machine from a clean environment.