{"id":"MAL-2026-17559","revision":null,"records":[{"revision":"a6a092322484406eacb65eb3035d5bd7","observedAt":"2026-10-24T13:17:17.793+00:00","statement":{"source":"osv","id":"MAL-2026-17559","aliases":[],"title":"Malicious code in hardhat-kex (npm)","description":"\n---\n_-= Per source details. Do not edit below this line.=-_\n\n## Source: amazon-inspector (b8fa212654344b734814cee2291c9b9b91ecbc353bde5e83740624ee5f263c69)\nThe npm package hardhat-kex@2.0.1 ships an obfuscated 4.5MB single-line bundle at lib/config.js (obfuscator.io-style string-array with a 26,234-entry table and numeric-dispatch wrapper, containing exec strings). The package main index.js unconditionally executes this bundle on require via `const config = require('./lib/config')`; the return value is never used, so the sole effect of importing the package is to run the obfuscated code. The surface API exported by index.js is an unrelated stub Express middleware that calls `next()`. The tarball additionally ships verbatim files from the pino logging library (lib/proto.js, levels.js, transport.js, worker.js, redaction.js, docs/, index.d.ts, README.md) despite the package being named for the Hardhat/Ethereum ecosystem and describing itself as a vulnerability-management tool; none of the pino sources are reachable through the exported API. The name/description/API mismatch combined with bundled pino cover-story files is a decoy pattern designed to make the tarball appear legitimate while the obfuscated loader is the only code that actually runs. Any project adding hardhat-kex as a dependency will execute the opaque payload on import.\n","state":0,"publishedAt":"2026-10-05T03:34:40+00:00","modifiedAt":"2026-10-05T04:15:06.6115956+00:00","affected":[{"ecosystem":"npm","name":"hardhat-kex","ranges":[],"versions":["2.0.1"],"rawVersionEvidence":null}],"metrics":[],"references":["https://www.npmjs.com/package/hardhat-kex/v/2.0.1"],"sourceUrl":"https://osv.dev/vulnerability/MAL-2026-17559","license":"OSV · upstream source license applies","key":"osv:MAL-2026-17559","identifiers":["MAL-2026-17559"]},"retained":false,"historicalAffected":[]}],"coverage":[{"source":"cisa-kev:global","scope":"Complete CISA KEV catalog; all vendors. Missing entries do not establish absence of exploitation.","generation":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.7133238+00:00","complete":true,"records":1779,"lastAttemptAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.7133238+00:00","lastSuccessAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.8786336+00:00","error":null,"lastVerifiedAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.8786343+00:00","snapshotPublishedAt":null,"importing":false,"stagedRecords":0,"checkedIdentifiers":null,"expectedIdentifiers":null,"failedIdentifiers":null},{"source":"cve-program","scope":"Official CVE Program baseline and cumulative hourly delta; all vendors, published and rejected records","generation":"cve-de3b77103708811b6494d2ff7c979037d73ae579742cd1649a5c765137ae5083-66440cb8d957f26a0d8f3a03b6765fa8b16e4c6b9cb48b55edd1ea7f4548f7f5","complete":true,"records":424194,"lastAttemptAt":"2026-11-11T17:57:32.9124856+00:00","lastSuccessAt":"2026-11-11T17:57:32.763439+00:00","error":null,"lastVerifiedAt":"2026-11-11T17:57:32.9124856+00:00","snapshotPublishedAt":"2026-11-11T17:27:49+00:00","importing":false,"stagedRecords":0,"checkedIdentifiers":null,"expectedIdentifiers":null,"failedIdentifiers":null},{"source":"euvd","scope":"Rolling EUVD lookups of CVE aliases in current public OSV archives; 500 identifiers per refresh, rechecked after 48 hours. Not a global EUVD catalog. Successful not-found lookups count as checked; they do not imply withdrawal or safety. No reader inventory is sent.","generation":"enrichment-8e2a34a18d694453aff340dede947f74","complete":false,"records":13759,"lastAttemptAt":"2026-11-11T18:10:43.0838006+00:00","lastSuccessAt":"2026-11-11T18:10:43.078+00:00","error":null,"lastVerifiedAt":"2026-11-11T18:10:43.078+00:00","snapshotPublishedAt":null,"importing":false,"stagedRecords":0,"checkedIdentifiers":13584,"expectedIdentifiers":13813,"failedIdentifiers":0},{"source":"first-epss:nuget","scope":"FIRST EPSS for explicit CVE aliases in the collected public NuGet archive. Not a global EPSS backfill.","generation":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.7133238+00:00","complete":true,"records":1097,"lastAttemptAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.7133238+00:00","lastSuccessAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.8793973+00:00","error":null,"lastVerifiedAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.8793975+00:00","snapshotPublishedAt":null,"importing":false,"stagedRecords":0,"checkedIdentifiers":null,"expectedIdentifiers":null,"failedIdentifiers":null},{"source":"nvd","scope":"Rolling NVD lookups of CVE aliases in current public OSV archives; 500 identifiers per refresh, rechecked after 48 hours. Not a global NVD catalog. Successful not-found lookups count as checked; they do not imply withdrawal or safety. No reader inventory is sent.","generation":"enrichment-9169816ed33d4259981dbb50309d6730","complete":false,"records":13753,"lastAttemptAt":"2026-11-11T18:01:00.7925805+00:00","lastSuccessAt":"2026-11-11T16:59:52.052+00:00","error":"100 identifier lookups failed; latest failures include request timeout. Other identifiers were checked independently.","lastVerifiedAt":"2026-11-11T16:59:52.052+00:00","snapshotPublishedAt":null,"importing":false,"stagedRecords":0,"checkedIdentifiers":13713,"expectedIdentifiers":13813,"failedIdentifiers":100},{"source":"osv:Go","scope":"Complete OSV Go ecosystem archive, including withdrawn and malicious-package source records; statement counts are not unique CVE counts","generation":"go-3562b6c78fd1bd0f0b55daf66a0926ae24f65e462df7f6d928caad458fc696bf","complete":true,"records":9947,"lastAttemptAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.6525853+00:00","lastSuccessAt":"2026-11-11T04:27:43.6877707+00:00","error":null,"lastVerifiedAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.6525853+00:00","snapshotPublishedAt":"2026-11-11T03:32:46+00:00","importing":false,"stagedRecords":0,"checkedIdentifiers":null,"expectedIdentifiers":null,"failedIdentifiers":null},{"source":"osv:NuGet","scope":"Complete OSV NuGet ecosystem archive, including GitHub Advisory Database records; NuGet version matching only","generation":"nuget-456002455e0ab94bb92c95476d4e6d175c104cd594749982afd96c893728ecbc","complete":true,"records":2010,"lastAttemptAt":"2026-11-11T17:57:32.9596215+00:00","lastSuccessAt":"2026-11-11T02:36:58.1276999+00:00","error":null,"lastVerifiedAt":"2026-11-11T17:57:32.9596215+00:00","snapshotPublishedAt":"2026-11-11T01:17:51+00:00","importing":false,"stagedRecords":0,"checkedIdentifiers":null,"expectedIdentifiers":null,"failedIdentifiers":null},{"source":"osv:crates.io","scope":"Complete OSV crates.io ecosystem archive, including withdrawn and malicious-package source records; statement counts are not unique CVE counts","generation":"crates.io-baa8362b4daf9e5f39d5563775a55935e7b442c0735d33274a921579ce4a0d66","complete":true,"records":3093,"lastAttemptAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.6681473+00:00","lastSuccessAt":"2026-11-11T13:00:02.5446881+00:00","error":null,"lastVerifiedAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.6681473+00:00","snapshotPublishedAt":"2026-11-11T12:47:47+00:00","importing":false,"stagedRecords":0,"checkedIdentifiers":null,"expectedIdentifiers":null,"failedIdentifiers":null},{"source":"osv:npm","scope":"Complete OSV npm ecosystem archive, including withdrawn and malicious-package source records; statement counts are not unique CVE counts","generation":"npm-757d3692f9a7b34792dad960197f3cc953a54db59b7d0ffe3835a0ed9926f76b","complete":true,"records":231690,"lastAttemptAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.4500285+00:00","lastSuccessAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:27.5166432+00:00","error":null,"lastVerifiedAt":"2026-11-11T17:59:29.4500285+00:00","snapshotPublishedAt":"2026-11-11T17:48:14+00:00","importing":false,"stagedRecords":0,"checkedIdentifiers":null,"expectedIdentifiers":null,"failedIdentifiers":null}]}