nice-utils-helper

{"modified":"2026-08-19T04:18:04Z","published":"2026-08-19T04:18:04Z","schema_version":"1.7.4","id":"MAL-2026-14248","summary":"Malicious code in nice-utils-helper (npm)","details":"\n---\n_-= Per source details. Do not edit below this line.=-_\n\n## Source: amazon-inspector (5c88734e4d701b61fd197a942bc057f59c684d4eb9994ca0efc7136dfcf893c9)\nThe npm package nice-utils-helper@1.0.0 executes probe.js from its postinstall lifecycle. On install, probe.js issues requests to cloud instance-metadata service endpoints (AWS 169.254.169.254, Aliyun 100.100.100.200, Tencent metadata.tencentyun.com, 169.254.0.23) using curl/http.request/GET and records per-target reachability along with the host's hostname and cwd. It then writes NCODE_META.txt and NCODE_POC_MARKER.txt into the current directory as well as../ and../.., leaving beacon/marker artifacts above the package root. The package advertises itself as a 'game metadata' utility and self-labels the probing as an 'Authorized PoC', but the executed behavior is unsolicited cloud-environment reconnaissance and cross-directory file writes on the installer's machine at install time, unrelated to any advertised utility functionality.\n","affected":[{"package":{"ecosystem":"npm","name":"nice-utils-helper"},"versions":["1.0.0"],"database_specific":{"cwes":[{"cweId":"CWE-506","description":"The product contains code that appears to be malicious in nature.","name":"Embedded Malicious Code"}],"indicators":{"evidence_files":[{"path":"probe.js","sha256":"051e6a7d32321dba37a5f64d67e3b5e108f8eafea2d43e60d6d1dd5ad0c5e9dc","tlsh":"de4152ced1f6b0a553b2b3a8c22f03193563c1c74949de24fd9d43626f604782a218ed"}],"package_integrity":[{"filename":"nice-utils-helper-1.0.0.tgz","hashes":{"sha1":"86cd3cf28e8859d3db1ca321858743e44410ae6e","sha512_sri":"sha512-6datUmOSNXNf/knPvcxNVzQUW1Fxbdsh4lgQGU4ZDSFnGZoQEBDoB7hV/4g2ktu5xPnfppbkCk5IrGYAqt7Gxw=="}}]}}}],"references":[{"type":"PACKAGE","url":"https://www.npmjs.com/package/nice-utils-helper/v/1.0.0"}],"credits":[{"name":"Amazon Inspector","type":"FINDER","contact":["inspector-research@amazon.com"]}],"database_specific":{"malicious-packages-origins":[{"id":"IN-MAL-2026-018357","import_time":"2026-08-19T04:18:14.127191903Z","modified_time":"2026-08-19T04:18:04Z","sha256":"5c88734e4d701b61fd197a942bc057f59c684d4eb9994ca0efc7136dfcf893c9","source":"amazon-inspector","versions":["1.0.0"]}]}}