North Korea's Hacker Group Deploys Malicious Version of Python Package in PyPI Repository

ReversingLabs spotted “VMConnect” in early August, a malicious offer chain marketing and marketing and marketing campaign with two dozen rogue Python packages on PyPI.

It’s been observed that these packages mimicked the next identified start-source Python instruments:-

• vConnector
• eth-tester
• Databases

Cybersecurity researchers at ReversingLabs honest nowadays identified that a North Korean hacker neighborhood is actively deploying malicious versions of Python Functions within the PyPI repository.

The safety analysts analyzed the total malicious packages, and after successfully decrypting the malicious packages, they linked their roots to Labyrinth Chollima, a branch of the illustrious North Korean utter-sponsored neighborhood Lazarus.

Recent years witnessed malicious actors imitating start-source packages, the employ of tactics like typosquatting to trick busy builders into placing in malware.

Malicious packages

Right here below, we now rating got mentioned the total malicious packages that the protection experts identified:-

• tablediter (736 downloads)
• put aside a query to-plus (43 downloads)
• requestspro (341 downloads)

The first of the three original packages pretends to be a table bettering instrument, while the others imitate the ‘requests’ Python library, adding ‘plus’ and ‘pro’ to look like enhanced respectable versions.

Malicious Python Equipment in PyPI Repository

The malicious actors used evasion tactics like typosquatting and mimicked the ‘requests’ equipment, copying its description and files without any additions.

The malicious packages within the “__init__.py” file had been finest altered and modified to launch a thread executing a feature from the “cookies.py” file after the addition of some traces of code.

The cookies.py file used to be altered with malicious functions to derive machine data, sending it by POST to a C2 server URL. It then retrieves a token by a GET HTTP put aside a query to to 1 other C2 server URL.

The infected host receives a double-encrypted Python module with execution parameters, decoding it and downloading the next malware stage from a supplied URL.

The same to the previous VMConnect marketing and marketing and marketing campaign, the C2 server waited for moral targets, withholding extra commands, making marketing and marketing and marketing campaign overview now not easy.

While investigating VMConnect, ReversingLabs aimed to connect it with varied malware campaigns, uncovering hints linking it to Lazarus Community, a North Korean APT neighborhood.

Further investigation stumbled on the py_QRcode equipment mentioned in a July 2023 JPCERT document (https://blogs.jpcert.or.jp/en/2023/07/dangerouspassword_dev.html), nonetheless it used to be never on PyPI. This raises questions about how the malware reached victims despite being tied to this equipment.

Code similarities between VMConnect and JPCERT/CC findings link both to the Lazarus Community, confirming North Korean utter sponsorship.

IoCs

Repeat and defend watch over (C2) domains and IP take care of:

• packages-api.check
• tableditermanaging.pro
• 45.61.136.133

PyPI packages:

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