Malicious code in ig-gox (PyPI)

Importing ig_gox runs ig_gox/init.py, which decodes a blob (base64, XOR, zlib) after a few anti-debugging checks and execs it as main. The decoded loader only goes on if it looks like a physical Android device running Termux (it turns away x86, emulators and VMs), installs requests and cryptography if they are missing, downloads encrypted code from https://goxtools.shop/api/admin/storage.php, decrypts it with AES-256-CBC and runs it in memory. The README only calls it a runtime engine for Termux. I decoded the loader statically and did not see what the downloaded code does. I read 1.0.0 and did not run it.

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Source: amazon-inspector (9b31f8ba5b2167be45b02cd3bbf840873adf76369e3ac472f1cccfc4a0579fff)

The pypi package ig-gox ships a top-level ig_gox/init.py that, on import (the README's documented usage), base64-decodes a ~5 KB embedded blob, XOR-decrypts it with a hardcoded key, zlib-decompresses it, HMAC-verifies it, then exec/compiles the resulting Python under name='main'. The visible wrapper has no other functionality; all actual behavior of the package is contained in that concealed blob. Before decoding, the module performs anti-analysis checks: it calls sys.exit(0) if sys.gettrace() returns a tracer, if the process environment/cwd/argv contain substrings such as 'uncompyle', 'pycdc', 'decompyle', 'deobfuscate', 'hook', or 'frida', and it tampers with references to builtins.exec/eval/compile. The combination of a hidden exec-of-decoded-payload reached automatically on import and explicit evasions against debuggers and decompilers is deliberate concealment of code execution from the installer and from reviewers.

Source: kam193 (780638a0747103eb44a85312a2cfb552981e498655f638c5baf86eb4a5f74042)

Package hides obfuscated code aimed to avoid analysis and downloading the remote stage. The remote code is used to abuse Instagram service for mass fake account registration.

Category: MALICIOUS - The campaign has clearly malicious intent, like infostealers.

Campaign: 2026-10-ig-gox

Reasons (based on the campaign):

• The package contains code to detect if it is running in a sandbox environment.

• obfuscation

• Downloads and executes a remote malicious script.

• abusing-3rd-api