OpenSSF/OSV advisory MAL-2026-4539 confirms this npm version as malicious. bin/create-kachow.js declares a BUILTIN_KEYS object containing live API keys for four third-party AI providers (Gemini key starting AIzaSyByPyGWXRVsa0..., OpenRouter sk-or-v1-673e3b6d..., Mistral OiCiNtvBsogE..., DeepSeek sk-7ecd4ed8...). The key-resolution helpers (e.g. resolveGeminiKeys) fall back to these built-in keys whenever the corresponding env var is unset, so any installer running `npx create-kachow`...
Source
OpenSSF Malicious Packages via OSV
Summary
Malicious code in create-kachow (npm)
Details
bin/create-kachow.js declares a BUILTIN_KEYS object containing live API keys for four third-party AI providers (Gemini key starting AIzaSyByPyGWXRVsa0..., OpenRouter sk-or-v1-673e3b6d..., Mistral OiCiNtvBsogE..., DeepSeek sk-7ecd4ed8...). The key-resolution helpers (e.g. resolveGeminiKeys) fall back to these built-in keys whenever the corresponding env var is unset, so any installer running `npx create-kachow` obtains and uses live credentials against generativelanguage.googleapis.com, openrouter.ai, api.mistral.ai, and api.deepseek.com. Two installer-affecting harms follow: (1) the keys are extractable from the package by anyone who installs it and can be abused against the four third-party providers (credential redistribution); (2) the README advertises a 'deterministic template generator — no AI required' fallback when no keys are set, but the code instead silently routes the user-supplied app description (the `appPrompt` from `ask("Describe your app:")`) to those four providers under the author's account, where prompts may be logged. This contradicts documented behavior and makes the data flow non-consensual.
Decision reason
OpenSSF Malicious Packages via OSV confirms create-kachow@1.2.0 as malicious (MAL-2026-4539): Malicious code in create-kachow (npm)