Rogue node Plans Mimic Telegram Bot API to Plant SSH Backdoors on Linux Systems

Apr 19, 2025Ravie LakshmananLinux / Malware

Security researchers have uncovered three malignant packages in the node registration that masquerade as a popular Telegram app catalogue but port SSH backdoors and data exfiltration capabilities.

The deals in issue are listed below-

According to provide network security firm Socket, the packages are designed to imitate , a famous Node. java Telegram Bot API with over 100,000 regular files. The three library are also available for download.

” While that number may sound reasonable, it only takes a second affected setting to pave the way for wide-scale invasion or unauthorized data entry,” security researcher Kush Pandya .

” Source network security incidents consistently show that even a handful of installs can have severe repercussions, especially when attackers gain direct access to developer systems or production servers. “

The renegade packages not just replicate the outline of the genuine library, but also utilize a technique called in a bid to enhance the authenticity and trick unsuspecting developers into downloading them.

Starjacking refers to an strategy where an open-source offer is made to become more common than it is by linking the GitHub collection associated with the reasonable library. This usually takes advantage of the non-existing verification of the connection between the bundle and the GitHub repository.

Socket’s study found that the items are designed to directly work on Linux systems, adding two SSH keys to the” ~/. ssh/authorized_keys” file, so granting the attackers prolonged remote access to the sponsor.

The text is designed to obtain the program account and the external IP address by contacting “ipinfo[. ]io/ip. ” It also beacons out to an external server (” solana. validator[. ]blog” ) to confirm the infection.

What makes the packages clever is that removing them does not completely eliminate the risk, as the inserted SSH keys offer unfettered remote access to the threat actors for later code execution and data intrusions.

The disclosure comes as Socket detailed another malicious package named that’s engineered to launch a reverse shell to a remote server while disguising as a Volet ( formerly Advcash ) integration.

” The package @naderabdi/merchant-advcash contains hardcoded logic that opens a reverse shell to a remote server upon invocation of a payment success handler,” the company . ” It is disguised as a utility for merchants to receive, validate, and manage cryptocurrency or fiat payments. “

” Unlike many malicious packages that execute code during installation or import, this payload is delayed until runtime, specifically, after a successful transaction. This approach may help evade detection, as the malicious code only runs under specific runtime conditions. “

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