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Malicious npm Packages Exploit Ethereum Smart Contracts to Target Crypto Developers

Cybersecurity researchers have discovered two new malicious packages on the npm registry that make use of smart contracts for the Ethereum blockchain to carry out malicious actions on compromised systems, signaling the trend of threat actors constantly on the lookout for new ways to distribute malware and fly under the radar.

“The two npm packages abused smart contracts to conceal malicious commands that installed downloader malware on compromised systems,” ReversingLabs researcher Lucija Valentić said in a report shared with The Hacker News.

Amazon disrupts Russian APT29 hackers targeting Microsoft 365

Researchers have disrupted an operation attributed to the Russian state-sponsored threat group Midnight Blizzard, which sought access to Microsoft 365 accounts and data.

Also known as APT29, the hacker group compromised websites in a watering hole campaign to redirect selected targets “to malicious infrastructure designed to trick users into authorizing attacker-controlled devices through Microsoft’s device code authentication flow.”

The Midnight Blizzard threat actor has been linked to Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) and is well-known for its clever phishing methods that recently impacted European embassies, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and TeamViewer.

Malicious npm Package nodejs-smtp Mimics Nodemailer, Targets Atomic and Exodus Wallets

Cybersecurity researchers have discovered a malicious npm package that comes with stealthy features to inject malicious code into desktop apps for cryptocurrency wallets like Atomic and Exodus on Windows systems.

The package, named nodejs-smtp, impersonates the legitimate email library nodemailer with an identical tagline, page styling, and README descriptions, attracting a total of 347 downloads since it was uploaded to the npm registry in April 2025 by a user named “nikotimon.” It’s currently no longer available.

“On import, the package uses Electron tooling to unpack Atomic Wallet’s app.asar, replace a vendor bundle with a malicious payload, repackage the application, and remove traces by deleting its working directory,” Socket researcher Kirill Boychenko said.

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