pafex

Details

**Severity:** Critical

**Affected versions:** `= 2.3`

## Source: kam193 (8ad1f51a6f081ac9e46b3d3ffa2d0b9b150b1600caf826d940f4e3d1992cda16)
In this campaign, the main package (resion) has an embeded pickle disguised as a config. A related dependency (pafex) contains code to load the pickle. During unpickling, malicious code embeded in the pickle file is automatically executed. It then establishes persistence via a PTH file and downloads the next stage payload. During analysis, the final remote payload was just a stub


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Category: MALICIOUS - The campaign has clearly malicious intent, like infostealers.


Campaign: 2026-10-webreader


Reasons (based on the campaign):


 - files-exfiltration


 - obfuscation


 - The malicious code is intentionally included in a dependency of the package


 - Downloads and executes a remote malicious script.


 - The package contains code to execute remote commands (probably limited to a specific set) on the victim's machine.


 - rat


 - persistence


 - abuses-pth

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Credit: [OpenSSF](https://github.com/ossf/malicious-packages) ([source](https://github.com/ossf/malicious-packages/blob/cb51fe43f9a76d25f225f2f5f7aca7e7dcf090a3/osv/malicious/pypi/pafex/MAL-2026-18094.json))

**References:**
- https://bad-packages.kam193.eu/pypi/package/pafex
- https://github.com/ossf/malicious-packages/blob/cb51fe43f9a76d25f225f2f5f7aca7e7dcf090a3/osv/malicious/pypi/pafex/MAL-2026-18094.json
- https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-pqqp-5w2f-783q

Compromised versions (1)

• = 2.3

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