MAL-2026-6232

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Import Source
https://github.com/ossf/malicious-packages/blob/main/osv/malicious/npm/free-claude/MAL-2026-6232.json
JSON Data
https://api.osv.dev/v1/vulns/MAL-2026-6232
Aliases
  • GHSA-7qpf-5pm7-57rh
Published
2026-06-19T17:37:59Z
Modified
2026-06-24T03:31:23.595446313Z
Summary
Malicious code in free-claude (npm)
Details

-= Per source details. Do not edit below this line.=-

Source: amazon-inspector (7e5cf1276f4faf6de26e95f05cc2bb95d90c71473c20e9542c9e88c2d949dfb9)

Package name 'free-claude' and author 'anthropic-claude' impersonate Anthropic's Claude product, with a README claiming to install the official Claude desktop app. On npm install, package.json's postinstall hook runs node install.js, which at install.js:158 executes execSync('npx scan-only --diagnose', { stdio: 'inherit' }). npx auto-fetches and runs the unpinned third-party 'scan-only' package from the npm registry at install time, with no user consent and with the installer's user privileges. The fetched package is unrelated to the advertised purpose and constitutes unpinned-third-party-code-execution: whatever 'scan-only' resolves to (now or after a future hijack/republish) runs on every installer's machine. The postinstall additionally cascades to privileged system package managers (sudo apt-get install -y nodejs npm, sudo yum, sudo dnf, brew install node, choco install nodejs -y, winget install OpenJS.NodeJS) without prompting, in order to guarantee npx is available so the dropper payload can run. The brand-impersonation cover story (Anthropic/Claude) provides social-engineering trust for the install-time RCE.

Source: ghsa-malware (dbcf53e9c254b18b24a10378af086468449a29be879ee1e5c8e360a194b09a41)

Any computer that has this package installed or running should be considered fully compromised. All secrets and keys stored on that computer should be rotated immediately from a different computer. The package should be removed, but as full control of the computer may have been given to an outside entity, there is no guarantee that removing the package will remove all malicious software resulting from installing it.

Source: ossf-package-analysis (250141bb9d199b78a2ed2568d8695e536ca9c469eff127f0c487ec56cae8664e)

The OpenSSF Package Analysis project identified 'free-claude' @ 1.1.0 (npm) as malicious.

It is considered malicious because:

  • The package executes one or more commands associated with malicious behavior.
Database specific 
{
    "malicious-packages-origins": [
        {
            "modified_time": "2026-06-19T17:37:59Z",
            "versions": [
                "1.1.0"
            ],
            "sha256": "250141bb9d199b78a2ed2568d8695e536ca9c469eff127f0c487ec56cae8664e",
            "import_time": "2026-06-20T00:59:13.890769941Z",
            "source": "ossf-package-analysis"
        },
        {
            "modified_time": "2026-06-22T18:07:04Z",
            "ranges": [
                {
                    "type": "SEMVER",
                    "events": [
                        {
                            "introduced": "0"
                        }
                    ]
                }
            ],
            "sha256": "dbcf53e9c254b18b24a10378af086468449a29be879ee1e5c8e360a194b09a41",
            "import_time": "2026-06-22T18:34:18.087445249Z",
            "source": "ghsa-malware",
            "id": "GHSA-7qpf-5pm7-57rh"
        },
        {
            "modified_time": "2026-06-24T02:44:42Z",
            "versions": [
                "1.0.0"
            ],
            "sha256": "3b2a1254547ebb882d213ae56400e519d1d01bf6c96341282e612be55e25121a",
            "import_time": "2026-06-24T03:14:01.331725029Z",
            "source": "amazon-inspector",
            "id": "IN-MAL-2026-007397"
        },
        {
            "modified_time": "2026-06-24T02:44:48Z",
            "versions": [
                "1.0.1"
            ],
            "sha256": "7e5cf1276f4faf6de26e95f05cc2bb95d90c71473c20e9542c9e88c2d949dfb9",
            "id": "IN-MAL-2026-007398",
            "source": "amazon-inspector",
            "import_time": "2026-06-24T03:14:01.448620498Z"
        }
    ]
}
References
Credits

Affected packages

npm / free-claude

Package

Name
free-claude
View open source insights on deps.dev
Purl
pkg:npm/free-claude

Affected ranges

Type
SEMVER
Events
Introduced
0Unknown introduced version / All previous versions are affected

Affected versions

1.*
1.0.0
1.0.1
1.1.0

Database specific

indicators 
{
    "evidence_files": [
        {
            "tlsh": "bd71168a1ef352b486b3a19e6f9b50667023c6033144e640b5dd836b1fd15688ea27ef",
            "sha256": "d244ef04cf542d37478ecaf84399e31fe17d5c3961ddc1e27bdd5acc5f3f12bb",
            "path": "install.js"
        },
        {
            "tlsh": "dde0861848235973b9c4ab995da78947b3a21d2b00c438085bd7111c47cf23e8cbfb5e",
            "sha256": "7a635857bc4c880e46d6a5795e27a01a02e6e24bde3d2dc57810334da824a5bd",
            "path": "package.json"
        }
    ]
}
cwes 
[
    {
        "description": "The product contains code that appears to be malicious in nature.",
        "name": "Embedded Malicious Code",
        "cweId": "CWE-506"
    },
    {
        "description": "The product contains code that appears to be malicious in nature.",
        "name": "Embedded Malicious Code",
        "cweId": "CWE-506"
    },
    {
        "description": "The product contains code that appears to be malicious in nature.",
        "name": "Embedded Malicious Code",
        "cweId": "CWE-506"
    }
]
source 
"https://github.com/ossf/malicious-packages/blob/main/osv/malicious/npm/free-claude/MAL-2026-6232.json"