Beyond the Backdoor: How Contagious Interview Is Surgically Tampering with MetaMask Wallets
2026-02-15 • unpacker •
Recent Contagious Interview activity attributed in the source to North Korean threat actors targets cryptocurrency, Web3, and AI professionals through fake technical assessments and trojanized NPM packages. The updated first-stage JavaScript has been reduced to beaconing, retrieving next-stage C2 details, and downloading additional payloads, including file-stealing JavaScript, a lightweight backdoor, and the Python-based InvisibleFerret backdoor. The malware searches Windows, macOS, and Linux systems for browser credentials, cryptocurrency wallets, password-manager files, private keys, seed phrases, KeePass databases, Solana artifacts, Hardhat files, and related developer secrets. A notable added capability uses a backdoor command to fetch a script that replaces the legitimate MetaMask extension in Chrome or Brave with an attacker-controlled version, modifies browser preference protections, and captures wallet unlock passwords through attacker C2 infrastructure.
Indicators of Compromise
| Type | Value | First Seen | Last Seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| IPv4 | 67.203.7.205 | 2026-01-21 | 2026-02-26 |
| HASH | ba5c684d5d611af8d2ec318b6686146… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 69334a01975f4dcb54f46b5f05f816f… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 82f1b800b8943ca26b2fdab24bd110c… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | c7d47efa0bcaba9f7d35c435e1980d1… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | c17f768fe159b130e02c56888a05e24… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | da7e6782b89e0ef20122aab9ed9d27d… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 6244da9940f50b9f51e3d85766cb1226 | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 05946c091c7cb81229b2942f13cc350… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 8e6db10b5acc15c2cc54592e3dd49bf7 | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 5b7760a047e36e083e96767fb1690bc… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 036fa24884c65539edb26d52bf10fc4… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 70d7ee4e18e96253a9ba8b97ffce9a7… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 68e803f75e6a0032f548f1212f146b3… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 05e550c238b31e9cba5978010a2d86c… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 429fcc2850979750bdc336152d30522… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 6d30f5fc9bcf0416b1bc96b16dc1e4f… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | d423bf6b18662aed88ddd69c72b4e116 | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| HASH | 58d06f53b9bac9aaeec4b6b9aeca9ec… | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| IPv4 | 147.124.202.163 | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| IPv4 | 45.43.11.200 | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| IPv4 | 145.59.1.45 | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| IPv4 | 202.163.147.124 | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| IPv4 | 66.235.28.238 | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| IPv4 | 45.43.11.248 | 2026-02-15 | 2026-02-15 |
| IPv4 | 66.235.168.238 | 2026-01-12 | 2026-02-15 |