Cryptocurrency Mining Scandal: Ultralytics AI Library Compromised!
Key Takeaways
- ReversingLabs cybersecurity experts have discovered that hackers secretly added malicious code to the Ultralytics AI library, turning it right into a cryptocurrency mining tool.
- The hackers manipulated the library’s construct system to inject XMRig mining software into updates 8.3.41 and eight.3.42.
- They gained access through GitHub Actions Script Injection and crafted fake pull requests.
- Despite having over 60 million downloads, the library’s compromise was limited to cryptocurrency mining.
- Developers and users are urged to confirm software updates and their sources to forestall similar breaches.
Unveiling the Breach
ReversingLabs, of their latest report shared with Hackread.com, unveiled that the Ultralytics AI library had been hijacked to mine cryptocurrency. This discovery comes hot on the heels of one other incident involving a malicious Python package, aiocpa, which was spreading an infostealer.
It all began on December 4th when an update (version 8.3.41) for Ultralytics was released on the Python Package Index (PyPI). Unbeknownst to users, hackers had already infiltrated the construct environment, introducing malicious code after the code review process was complete.
The malicious code fetched a program called XMRig, a cryptocurrency miner. Shockingly, even a “fix” (version 8.3.42) released the next day was tainted since the maintainers couldn’t discover the breach, perpetuating the problem until version 8.3.43 was released, finally resolving the attack.
The Hackers’ Playbook
The hackers cleverly exploited a GitHub Actions Script Injection to breach the construct environment of a trusted npm package, @solana/web3.js. This move allowed them to fork any repository using ultralytics/actions and craft pull requests with injection payloads hidden within the titles.
Two malevolent pull requests, #18018 and #18020, were crafted to enable backdoor access to the compromised environment. The hacker, generally known as openimbot, and their distant connections were traced back to Hong Kong, as per the knowledge from Ultralytics maintainers. By cleverly disguising their intentions, they tricked the system into executing their harmful code.
The Fallout: Millions at Risk
With Ultralytics boasting over 60 million downloads and 30,000 GitHub stars, this breach had the potential to affect thousands and thousands. Luckily, the damage remained limited to cryptocurrency mining. However, the incident highlights the vulnerabilities in software supply chains, where more harmful code like backdoors might have been inserted.
Developers are reminded to take care of caution at every stage to safeguard AI projects. This breach also underscores the importance of software security, urging developers to scrutinize code changes from untrusted sources and inspiring users to download from trusted sources and keep their software updated.
Related Topics
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- PythonAnywhere Cloud Platform Abused to Host Ransomware
- Qubitstrike Malware Hits Jupyter Notebooks for Cryptojacking
- VMCONNECT: Malicious PyPI Package Mimicking Python Tools
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Image Credit: hackread.com
