Malicious code in @denzz221/baileys (npm)
What's happening and what to do
Anyone who installs this package gets their own WhatsApp account silently subscribed to a channel the publisher picked, using their logged-in session and without telling them. The attacker can use these hidden actions to push content and grow their audience through your account. npm package @denzz221/baileys, a malicious fork of the Baileys WhatsApp library, including versions 2.0.0, 7.0.0, 8.0.5, 8.0.6, 8.0.8, and 8.1.1, plus several others. Remove @denzz221/baileys from your projects, switch to the official Baileys package, review your WhatsApp channel subscriptions, and check for signs of compromise in your installed dependencies.
AI summary of the sources on this page. Regenerated when a source changes.
Affected versions
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected | Safe from |
|---|---|---|---|
| npm | @denzz221/baileys | 2.0.0, 7.0.0, 8.0.5, 8.0.6, 8.0.8, 8.1.1, 8.1.2, 8.1.3, 8.1.5, 8.1.6, 8.1.7 | None. Remove it. |
Signals over time
- 2026-11-05 06:40First seen here.
Source text
@denzz221/baileys is a fork of the Baileys WhatsApp Web library that silently subscribes the installer's own WhatsApp account to WhatsApp Channels chosen by the publisher. When the socket connects, code in lib/Socket/newsletter.js sends the WhatsApp w:mex FOLLOW query for the channel ID(s) 120363431475943819@newsletter (stored base64-encoded), using the victim's authenticated session and without telling them. Same behaviour as the PhantomSub family (MAL-2026-17342). --- Credit: [OpenSSF](https://github.com/ossf/malicious-packages) ([source](https://github.com/ossf/malicious-packages/blob/23ba843b4a773277fa7a4a51240e83cd70ea2a45/osv/malicious/npm/@denzz221/baileys/MAL-2026-18675.json))