Malicious code in github-policy-bot (npm)
The npm package github-policy-bot contained malicious code that exfiltrated host identifiers and environment metadata during installation via a postinstall script. The package name shadowed a legitimate Google-owned repository and was authored under a placeholder account claiming security research purposes.
- Disclosed
- Last updated
- Blast radius
- Any developer or system that installed the malicious github-policy-bot package from npm
- Ecosystems
- Attack vectors
- Affected entities
- github-policy-botMalicious npm package shadowing Google-owned js-github-policy-bot
The npm package github-policy-bot was found to contain malicious code in its postinstall script. Upon installation, the script collected sensitive host information including hostname, platform, architecture, Node.js version, package name, and npm lifecycle event details.
This collected metadata was transmitted via HTTP POST as JSON to a hardcoded third-party endpoint at vlfl47tl.instances.poc.jchunt.top/github-policy-bot. The request was designed to fail silently with a short timeout, consistent with a reconnaissance beacon pattern.
The package name was a typosquat of the legitimate js-github-policy-bot repository owned by Google. The malicious package's author was listed as r00tdaddy with a self-declared 'security research canary' label in the package metadata—a placeholder designation that did not affect the malicious behavior.
The incident was identified and credited to the OpenSSF's malicious-packages repository (MAL-2026-14245).
Indicators of compromise
- Packages
- github-policy-bot
- Domains
- vlfl47tl.instances.poc.jchunt.top
Remediation
- Immediately uninstall the github-policy-bot package from all systems
- Audit npm install logs to identify all systems that installed this package
- Assume hostname and environment metadata from affected systems may have been disclosed to the attacker
- Use the legitimate js-github-policy-bot package from Google if the functionality is needed
- Review npm package dependencies for similar typosquatting or shadowing attacks
- Enable npm audit and consider using npm provenance verification for supply chain security
Sources
- GitHub Advisory GHSA-6rrf-hp88-jgvw · GitHub Advisory Database
Cite this entry
"Malicious code in github-policy-bot (npm)." supplychainattack.org, Supply Chain Attack Incident Catalog. Disclosed August 19, 2026; last updated August 19, 2026. https://supplychainattack.org/incident/malicious-code-in-github-policy-bot-npm-1lbk1a
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