New Shai-Hulud Variants Hit More Than 100 npm and PyPI Packages
Summary
New Shai-Hulud variants targeted more than 100 npm and PyPI packages. The Miasma and Hades variants harvest credentials and spread through accessible packages; researchers identified 471 malicious artifacts.
Key points
- Researchers identified 471 malicious artifacts across affected npm and PyPI packages.
- Miasma runs during npm installation, scans local systems and connected cloud services for credentials and secrets, then uses them to infect packages the victim can access.
- Some malicious npm packages used a weaponized binding.gyp file designed to bypass postinstall execution logic while behaving similarly.
- The Hades PyPI variant used a *-setup.pth file to run at Python startup, fetch the Bun JavaScript runtime, and execute JavaScript code.
- Hades shares Miasma's credential-harvesting and self-spreading behavior, and uses a Shai-Hulud mechanism that publishes collected information to new GitHub repositories.
- A June 8 Hades wave included phantom PyPI releases and a changed execution chain that split the loader from the payload to evade detection.
Article Details
- Event Type
- Software supply-chain malware attacks targeting NPM and PyPI packages
- Impact
- The attacks affected more than 100 packages across NPM and PyPI, with 471 malicious artifacts identified. The Miasma and Hades variants harvested credentials, API keys, tokens, and other secrets, spread by infecting packages accessible to victims, and used GitHub repositories to publish collected information. A Red Hat Hybrid Cloud Console JavaScript ecosystem incident involved 32 infected packages.
MITRE ATT&CK
T1059.007 · JavaScriptThe PyPI payload fetched the Bun JavaScript runtime and executed JavaScript code.T1195.001 · Compromise Software Dependencies and Development ToolsThe worms spread through malicious or infected software packages in the NPM and PyPI ecosystems.T1552 · Unsecured CredentialsThe payload scanned local systems and connected cloud services for credentials, API keys, tokens, and other secrets.T1567.001 · Exfiltration to Code RepositoryThe Hades variant used GitHub repositories to publish collected information.
Threat Actors
Malware
ChainDropA direct descendant of Mini Shai-Hulud, Miasma is a multi-stage dropper executed during NPM installation, Harness explains.HadesThe Hades variantMiasmaThe Miasma variantShai-HuludNew iterations of the Shai-Hulud supply chain attack have hit over 100 packages across the NPM and PyPI ecosystems, security researchers warn.
Vendors
Products
npmNew iterations of the Shai-Hulud supply chain attack have hit over 100 packages across the NPM and PyPI ecosystems, security researchers warn.PyPINew iterations of the Shai-Hulud supply chain attack have hit over 100 packages across the NPM and PyPI ecosystems, security researchers warn.Red Hat Hybrid Cloud ConsoleThe first was the Red Hat incident, in which 32 packages part of Red Hat’s Hybrid Cloud Console JavaScript ecosystem were infected.Vapi server SDKThe attack hit the Vapi server SDK, as well as the ai-sdk-ollama, autotel, awaitly, executable-stories, node-env-resolver, and wrangler-deploy ecosystems.