GlassWorm malware has resurfaced on the Open VSX registry

GlassWorm malware has resurfaced on the Open VSX registry and has newly appeared in GitHub repositories, infecting three more VS Code extensions weeks after its removal from the official marketplace, according to Koi Security researchers. In mid-October, hackers spread malware through about a dozen infected extensions to steal NPM, GitHub, and Git credentials, and the malware also targets 49 cryptocurrency extensions, with around 35,000 downloads reported.

Three extensions were infected on November 6, totalling approximately 10,000 downloads: ai-driven-dev[.]ai-driven-dev (3,300 downloads), adhamu[.]history-in-sublime-merge (4,000 downloads) and yasuyuky[.]transient-emacs (2,400 downloads). Threat actors used a Solana blockchain transaction to update C2 addresses, while the exfiltration server stayed the same.

Koi reports attackers stole victims’ credentials and that GlassWorm now threatens critical infrastructure, spreading through the developer ecosystem and moving from OpenVSX to GitHub using AI-generated commits to hide its malicious payloads. A Russian-speaking actor is cited in the findings, with the campaign likely affecting many more victims than identified.