opensourcemalware.comarticleπ‘οΈ SecurityAn analysis of npm v12 (shipping ~July 2026, previewable on npm 11.16.0+), which flips three dangerous defaults to deny-by-default: automatic preinstall/install/postinstall lifecycle scripts, git dependencies (now requiring --allow-git), and remote HTTPS tarball dependencies (now requiring --allow-remote). The author, a DEF CON speaker on install-script abuse, argues the changes are genuinely good but warns that widespread legitimate use of install scripts (esbuild, sharp, core-js, puppeteer, node-gyp native builds) will drive developers toward reflexive npm approve-scripts approval, and that attackers will simply relocate payload execution outside npm's visibility (curl|bash in install.js, bootstrap binaries), citing DPRK actors' continued abuse of VSCode tasks files even after Microsoft disabled task.allowAutomaticTasks by default. It also surveys complementary controls gaining traction across the ecosystem: npm's min-release-age cooldown (following pnpm's minimumReleaseAge, Yarn's npmMinimalAgeGate, and Bun) and package-firewall products (Datadog's supply-chain-firewall, Liran Tal's npq, Socket, Aikido, Endor Labs).
npmVS Codepnpm+3
DPRKLiran Tal
Supply ChainΒ· Added 3 Sep 2026, published 10 Jun 2026