
The OpenSourceMalware Show #13
Weekly OpenSourceMalware podcast episode covering four security stories: GitHub enabling a default 3-day Dependabot cooldown to blunt account-takeover malware; the JScrambler npm compromise where a stolen/unknown publishing credential was used to push five malicious versions (moving the trigger from a pre-install script to on-import execution) plus four pinned dependent packages; the AsyncAPI compromise via a 58-day-unpatched GitHub Actions pull_request_target flaw that let attackers steal a privileged token and publish malicious @asyncapi npm packages containing components derived from the open-sourced Miasma malware; and new PolinRider (DPRK-linked) research showing a 6.5x rise in confirmed poisoned repos since March, with 94% of payloads delivered via JavaScript config-file injection and the rest via fake font files, plus multiple redundant triggers via VS Code task.json and git post-checkout/pre-commit hooks targeting individual developers previously compromised via Contagious Interview/TasksJacker.
Organisations named here
- AsyncAPI
- pull_request_target
Technologies named here
- jscrambler
- Dependabot
- JScrambler-related npm packages
- OpenSourceMalware threat reports/dataset
- @asyncapi npm packages
- Detection script
- VS Code hardening guidance
- GitHub Actions
- VS Code / Cursor / Windsurf
- npm
- VS Code
- git
Techniques named here
- Pre-install script npm lifecycle trigger
- On-import execution
- pull_request_target GitHub Actions exploitation
- Account takeover of publishing credentials
- Config file injection
- Fake font file technique
- Fake dictionary file technique
- VS Code task.json auto-execution
- settings.json overwrite
- Git post-checkout hook abuse
- Git pre-commit hook abuse
- CIS/Russian-language country check
- Multi-trigger redundancy
- Pwn Request
Threat actors named here
- PolinRider
- TasksJacker
- Contagious Interview
- Miasma
- Shai-Hulud 2.0
- DPRK
- Unnamed threat actor
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