{"id":757,"date":"2026-04-29T15:53:01","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T15:53:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedigitalfortress.us\/?p=757"},"modified":"2026-04-29T15:53:01","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T15:53:01","slug":"new-wave-of-dprk-attacks-uses-ai-inserted-npm-malware-fake-firms-and-rats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedigitalfortress.us\/?p=757","title":{"rendered":"New Wave of DPRK Attacks Uses AI-Inserted npm Malware, Fake Firms, and RATs"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Cybersecurity researchers have discovered malicious code in an npm package after a malicious package as a dependency to the project by Anthropic’s Claude Opus large language model (LLM).<\/p>\n

The package in question is \u00ab@validate-sdk\/v2<\/a>,\u00bb which is listed on npm as a utility software development kit (SDK) for hashing, validation, encoding\/decoding, and secure random generation. However, its real functionality is to plunder sensitive secrets from the compromised environment. The package, which shows signs of being vibe-coded using generative artificial intelligence (AI), was first uploaded to the repository in October 2025.<\/p>\n

The malware campaign has been codenamed PromptMink<\/strong> by ReversingLabs, which linked the activity as part of a broader campaign mounted by the North Korean threat actor known as Famous Chollima<\/strong> (aka Shifty Corsair), which is behind the long-running Contagious Interview campaign and the fraudulent IT Worker scam.<\/p>\n

\u00abThe new malware campaign […] involves a tainted package that was introduced in a Feb. 28 commit to an autonomous trading agent,\u00bb ReversingLabs researcher Vladimir Pezo said<\/a> in a report shared with The Hacker News. \u00abThe commit was co-authored<\/a> by Anthropic’s Claude Opus large language model (LLM). It allows attackers to access users’ crypto wallets and funds.\u00bb<\/p>\n

The package is listed as a dependency for an another npm package named \u00ab@solana-launchpad\/sdk<\/a>,\u00bb which, in turn, is used by a third package called \u00abopenpaw-graveyard<\/a>,\u00bb which is described as an \u00abautonomous AI agent\u00bb that creates a social on-chain identity on the Solana blockchain using the Tapestry Protocol<\/a>, trades cryptocurrency via Bankr<\/a>, as well as interacts with other agents on Moltbook<\/a>.<\/p>\n

ReversingLabs said the AI agent-generated packages were added as a dependency in a commit made in February 2026, causing the agent package to execute malicious code and give attackers access via leaked credentials to the victim’s cryptocurrency wallets and funds.<\/p>\n

The attack adopts a phased approach, where the first-layer packages do not contain any malicious code, but import second-layer packages that actually embed the nefarious functionality. Should the second cluster be detected or removed from npm, they are swiftly replaced.<\/p>\n

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\"Cybersecurity\"<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Some of the first-layer packages identified are listed below –<\/p>\n

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