mal-2026-17606
Vulnerability from ossf_malicious_packages
RubyGems runs this gem's native extension script ext/lighthing-invoice/extconf.rb during gem install. The script exits without action on CI runners and sandboxes, based on CI environment variables, the hostname, the username and the working directory. It continues if the system uptime is over 30 minutes and the home directory holds .ssh, .gitconfig, .npmrc, .gem/credentials or .bundle. It then decodes a Base64 Ruby payload and forks twice into a detached process. After 20 to 40 minutes the payload downloads http://45.138.12.177:8092/wgkit.tar.gz to /tmp/.w1.tgz with curl, extracts it to /tmp/.w1/, runs wg_install.sh with bash and deletes both. The payload stores the URL XOR-encoded with the key usv\x9a. The Ruby code in lib/ is a decoy. The RubyGems account reqthrottle_3474 published this gem and 41 others with the same loader on 2026-10-05.
-= Per source details. Do not edit below this line.=-
Source: amazon-inspector (206884c57f9427c6952744828fa53861634d5451b97ba86885c701ee47ef5012)
The gem's native-extension script ext/lighthing-invoice/extconf.rb, which executes during gem install, base64-decodes and evals a Ruby payload. The payload reconstructs an XOR-obfuscated URL (http://45.138.132.177:8092/wgkit.tar.gz), downloads a tarball to /tmp/.w1.tgz, extracts it, and runs bash /tmp/.w1/wg_install.sh. The declared native source (ext/lighthing-invoice/lighthing-invoice.c) is a 55-byte empty stub with no real code, so the extension slot exists only to run the dropper. Before firing, the script applies targeting and evasion checks (CI detection, ephemeral/sandbox hostname patterns, generated analyst usernames, analysis paths, uptime threshold, presence of developer artifacts such as ~/.ssh, ~/.gitconfig, ~/.npmrc, ~/.gem/credentials, ~/.bundle), then sleeps 1200-2400 seconds and double-forks (Process.setsid, std streams redirected to /dev/null) to detach from the install process. The package name 'lighthing-invoice' is a misspelling of 'lightning-invoice' and the public Ruby API is an inert BIP-39 word-list stub, consistent with a typosquat lure whose only functional behavior is the install-time dropper. The destination is a bare IP unrelated to any declared publisher, the fetched bash is unpinned and unverified, and the URL is obfuscated to evade static detection — installing this gem executes attacker-controlled shell on the host.
Source: ossf-package-analysis (8d3d008e1b5f59f86e4a7fd0779b16cf5adcb8897cb5097da42198e2be9b3207)
The OpenSSF Package Analysis project identified 'lighthing-invoice' @ 1.0.0 (rubygems) as malicious.
It is considered malicious because:
- The package executes one or more commands associated with malicious behavior.
{
"affected": [
{
"database_specific": {
"cwes": [
{
"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"
}
],
"indicators": {
"evidence_files": [
{
"path": "ext/lighthing-invoice/extconf.rb",
"sha256": "c1c702672141bb84dfd9e582acab6f85ce4934759e296f661eb8d9c614067e33",
"tlsh": "4351da5a8b8395f64db1d0d004359412fb667b0e6068a864f3de0868bb5af2ac0f02fd"
},
{
"path": "ext/lighthing-invoice/lighthing-invoice.c",
"sha256": "ed988189c9f020d68105634d8c8ad2773572834e8691cd404fcb93b60431926f",
"tlsh": "5a900285893c10025480bba36725850640d0b6694e9472546d171154aff03947a6a170"
}
]
}
},
"package": {
"ecosystem": "RubyGems",
"name": "lighthing-invoice"
},
"ranges": [
{
"events": [
{
"introduced": "0"
}
],
"type": "ECOSYSTEM"
}
],
"versions": [
"1.0.0"
]
}
],
"credits": [
{
"contact": [
"inspector-research@amazon.com"
],
"name": "Amazon Inspector",
"type": "FINDER"
},
{
"contact": [
"https://github.com/ossf/package-analysis",
"https://openssf.slack.com/channels/package_analysis"
],
"name": "OpenSSF: Package Analysis",
"type": "FINDER"
},
{
"contact": [
"https://safedep.io"
],
"name": "SafeDep",
"type": "FINDER"
}
],
"database_specific": {
"iocs": {
"files": [
{
"digests": {
"sha256": "c1c702672141bb84dfd9e582acab6f85ce4934759e296f661eb8d9c614067e33"
},
"note": "Native extension script that RubyGems runs at install time. It gates on the environment and starts the payload.",
"paths": [
"ext/lighthing-invoice/extconf.rb"
],
"source": "PACKAGE_ARCHIVE"
},
{
"note": "Second-stage archive and install script downloaded and run by the payload.",
"paths": [
"/tmp/.w1.tgz",
"/tmp/.w1/wg_install.sh"
],
"source": "DROPPED"
}
],
"ips": [
"45.138.12.177"
],
"urls": [
"http://45.138.12.177:8092/wgkit.tar.gz"
]
},
"malicious-packages-origins": [
{
"id": "IN-MAL-2026-021044",
"import_time": "2026-10-05T16:22:54.476351068Z",
"modified_time": "2026-10-05T15:56:03Z",
"sha256": "206884c57f9427c6952744828fa53861634d5451b97ba86885c701ee47ef5012",
"source": "amazon-inspector",
"versions": [
"1.0.0"
]
},
{
"import_time": "2026-10-06T00:50:50.087355597Z",
"modified_time": "2026-10-05T08:00:27Z",
"sha256": "8d3d008e1b5f59f86e4a7fd0779b16cf5adcb8897cb5097da42198e2be9b3207",
"source": "ossf-package-analysis",
"versions": [
"1.0.0"
]
}
]
},
"details": "RubyGems runs this gem\u0027s native extension script `ext/lighthing-invoice/extconf.rb` during `gem install`. The script exits without action on CI runners and sandboxes, based on CI environment variables, the hostname, the username and the working directory. It continues if the system uptime is over 30 minutes and the home directory holds `.ssh`, `.gitconfig`, `.npmrc`, `.gem/credentials` or `.bundle`. It then decodes a Base64 Ruby payload and forks twice into a detached process. After 20 to 40 minutes the payload downloads `http://45.138.12.177:8092/wgkit.tar.gz` to `/tmp/.w1.tgz` with `curl`, extracts it to `/tmp/.w1/`, runs `wg_install.sh` with `bash` and deletes both. The payload stores the URL XOR-encoded with the key `usv\\x9a`. The Ruby code in `lib/` is a decoy. The RubyGems account `reqthrottle_3474` published this gem and 41 others with the same loader on 2026-10-05.\n\n---\n_-= Per source details. Do not edit below this line.=-_\n\n## Source: amazon-inspector (206884c57f9427c6952744828fa53861634d5451b97ba86885c701ee47ef5012)\nThe gem\u0027s native-extension script ext/lighthing-invoice/extconf.rb, which executes during `gem install`, base64-decodes and evals a Ruby payload. The payload reconstructs an XOR-obfuscated URL (http://45.138.132.177:8092/wgkit.tar.gz), downloads a tarball to /tmp/.w1.tgz, extracts it, and runs `bash /tmp/.w1/wg_install.sh`. The declared native source (ext/lighthing-invoice/lighthing-invoice.c) is a 55-byte empty stub with no real code, so the extension slot exists only to run the dropper. Before firing, the script applies targeting and evasion checks (CI detection, ephemeral/sandbox hostname patterns, generated analyst usernames, analysis paths, uptime threshold, presence of developer artifacts such as ~/.ssh, ~/.gitconfig, ~/.npmrc, ~/.gem/credentials, ~/.bundle), then sleeps 1200-2400 seconds and double-forks (Process.setsid, std streams redirected to /dev/null) to detach from the install process. The package name \u0027lighthing-invoice\u0027 is a misspelling of \u0027lightning-invoice\u0027 and the public Ruby API is an inert BIP-39 word-list stub, consistent with a typosquat lure whose only functional behavior is the install-time dropper. The destination is a bare IP unrelated to any declared publisher, the fetched bash is unpinned and unverified, and the URL is obfuscated to evade static detection \u2014 installing this gem executes attacker-controlled shell on the host.\n\n## Source: ossf-package-analysis (8d3d008e1b5f59f86e4a7fd0779b16cf5adcb8897cb5097da42198e2be9b3207)\nThe OpenSSF Package Analysis project identified \u0027lighthing-invoice\u0027 @ 1.0.0 (rubygems) as malicious.\n\nIt is considered malicious because:\n\n- The package executes one or more commands associated with malicious behavior.\n",
"id": "MAL-2026-17606",
"modified": "2026-10-06T00:52:42.038443529Z",
"published": "2026-10-05T08:00:27Z",
"references": [
{
"type": "PACKAGE",
"url": "https://rubygems.org/gems/lighthing-invoice/versions/1.0.0"
},
{
"type": "REPORT",
"url": "https://safedep.io/rubygems-crypto-gems-install-time-reverse-shell/"
}
],
"schema_version": "1.7.4",
"summary": "Malicious code in lighthing-invoice (RubyGems)"
}
Sightings
| Author | Source | Type | Date | Other |
|---|
Nomenclature
- Seen: The vulnerability was mentioned, discussed, or observed by the user.
- Confirmed: The vulnerability has been validated from an analyst's perspective.
- Published Proof of Concept: A public proof of concept is available for this vulnerability.
- Exploited: The vulnerability was observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
- Patched: The vulnerability was observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
- Not exploited: The vulnerability was not observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
- Not confirmed: The user expressed doubt about the validity of the vulnerability.
- Not patched: The vulnerability was not observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
The approach is described in our paper Mapping CVEs to MITRE ATT&CK Techniques: A Curated Gold-Set Classifier and the Limits of LLM-Assisted Label Expansion.
Browse all ATT&CK techniques and the vulnerabilities related to each.
Related by attack behaviour
Vulnerabilities whose description is nearest to this one in the vector space of the CIRCL/vulnerability-attack-technique-biencoder model. This is a similarity search over the bi-encoder space (plain cosine), not a classification, and it has no measured accuracy.