Megalodon: automated CI/CD workflow injection backdoors 5,561 GitHub repos, propagates to @tiledesk/tiledesk-server on npm

What happened

Between 11:36 UTC and 17:48 UTC on 2026-05-18, an automated attacker codenamed Megalodon (SafeDep, 2026-05-22) pushed 5,718 malicious commits to 5,561 distinct public GitHub repositories inside a six-hour window. Each commit added or replaced a GitHub Actions workflow file containing a base64-encoded bash payload; the payload runs on the next CI execution and exfiltrates CI secrets, cloud credentials, SSH keys, OIDC tokens, and source-code secrets to a single C2 endpoint at 216.126.225.129:8443.

Two variants

The campaign deployed two distinct workflow patterns. SysDiag is the mass variant: it adds a new workflow that triggers on every push and pull_request, maximizing the chance of automatic execution the moment the affected repo runs CI again. Optimize-Build is the targeted variant: it overwrites an existing legitimate workflow with a workflow_dispatch trigger, creating a dormant backdoor the attacker can fire on demand through the GitHub API. The targeted variant is what hit Tiledesk.

The attacker authored each commit with one of four forged identities - build-bot, auto-ci, ci-bot, pipeline-bot - committed from randomized 8-character throwaway GitHub accounts, so the commits look like routine CI automation in a glance at the repository commit graph.

Tiledesk: from GitHub backdoor to npm tarball

The most consequential downstream effect of Megalodon was at Tiledesk, the open-source AI agent platform. On 2026-05-18 the Optimize-Build payload landed in nine Tiledesk repos: tiledesk-server, tiledesk-dashboard, tiledesk-telegram-connector, tiledesk-llm, tiledesk-docker-proxy, tiledesk-community-app, tiledesk-campaign-dashboard, tiledesk-helpcenter-template, and tiledesk-ai. The Tiledesk maintainer (npm user eljohnny) - unaware of the compromise - then released @tiledesk/tiledesk-server 2.18.6 on 2026-05-19, followed by 2.18.7, 2.18.8, 2.18.9, 2.18.10, 2.18.11, and finally 2.18.12 on 2026-05-21, all built from the poisoned source. The published npm tarball includes the malicious .github/workflows/docker-community-worker-push-latest.yml, so any consumer that runs CI against the package source ends up executing the backdoor.

Diffing 2.18.12 against the clean 2.18.5 shows exactly one changed file - the workflow yml. The npm publishing account itself was never compromised; this is the same trust-chain failure that hit the SAP @cap-js and Red Hat / Miasma campaigns earlier in 2026 - the source repository, not the publish token, is the weak link.

Attribution

SafeDep and Help Net Security tentatively link Megalodon to TeamPCP, the same threat actor responsible for the 2026-05-11 TanStack burst (@tanstack/*, @uipath/*, @mistralai/*), the 2026-06-01 Miasma compromise of @redhat-cloud-services, the March 2026 LiteLLM PyPI compromise, and the March 2026 Trivy / Checkmarx KICS GitHub Action cascade. The Mini Shai-Hulud–style mass automation, the build-bot-style forged identities, and the focus on CI/CD trust-chain abuse all fit the TeamPCP TTP profile, though SafeDep emphasises attribution remains "tentative" pending IOC overlap with prior campaigns.

What you can hunt for

• Workflow yml files added or modified on 2026-05-18 between 11:36 and 17:48 UTC, especially ones containing a long base64-encoded bash command
• Outbound HTTPS connections from any runner to 216.126.225.129:8443
• Commits authored by build-bot, auto-ci, ci-bot, or pipeline-bot after 2026-05-17
• New GitHub user accounts with randomized 8-character usernames added as collaborators or who pushed to forks

Affected packages (10)

Impact

• Mass GitHub Actions workflow injection across 5,561 public repositories - every push and pull_request triggers the malicious SysDiag workflow on the next CI run
• Targeted Optimize-Build variant replaces existing workflows with workflow_dispatch triggers, creating dormant backdoors the attacker can fire on demand via the GitHub API
• Exfiltrates CI secrets, AWS / GCP / Azure cloud credentials, SSH keys, GitHub Actions OIDC tokens, GITHUB_TOKEN, and any source-code secrets reachable from the runner
• C2 endpoint is a single attacker-controlled IP: 216.126.225.129:8443 - encrypted base64-encoded bash payloads POST exfil envelopes there
• @tiledesk/tiledesk-server 2.18.6 through 2.18.12 carries the workflow in the published npm tarball - anyone who installed those versions exposed their CI environment
• Forged author identities build-bot, auto-ci, ci-bot, pipeline-bot and randomized 8-character throwaway GitHub accounts make the commits look like routine bot activity
• Eight other Tiledesk repos were also poisoned (tiledesk-dashboard, tiledesk-telegram-connector, tiledesk-llm, tiledesk-docker-proxy, tiledesk-community-app, tiledesk-campaign-dashboard, tiledesk-helpcenter-template, tiledesk-ai) - even if a downstream consumer does not use the npm package they may pull from one of those source trees

What to do

1. 1Audit .github/workflows/ in every repo for any unexpected workflow file added on 2026-05-18 between 11:36 and 17:48 UTC - especially files named sysdiag.yml, optimize-build.yml, or any workflow containing a base64-encoded bash payload
2. 2Revert any malicious workflow commits and force-push the cleaned history; rotate any secret reachable from a runner that executed an affected workflow
3. 3Pin @tiledesk/tiledesk-server to 2.18.5 or earlier, or to 2.18.13+ once a clean release is published; do not install 2.18.6, 2.18.7, 2.18.8, 2.18.9, 2.18.10, 2.18.11, or 2.18.12
4. 4Block outbound network traffic to 216.126.225.129 and the entire /24 at egress; alert on any historical connection to that IP from build hosts
5. 5Search GitHub Audit Log for commits authored by build-bot, auto-ci, ci-bot, or pipeline-bot since 2026-05-18, and for any new GitHub user with a randomized 8-character username added as a collaborator or who pushed to a fork
6. 6Rotate every CI secret, cloud credential, SSH key, and OIDC token used by any build runner that executed an affected workflow - assume full credential exposure
7. 7Search npm publish history for unexpected releases between 2026-05-18 and the date the relevant token was rotated - Tiledesk is the confirmed example but any maintainer who released from a poisoned repo carries the same risk

References

• Megalodon: Mass GitHub Repo Backdooring via CI Workflows

  safedep.io
  SafeDep
• Megalodon GitHub Attack Targets 5,561 Repos with Malicious CI/CD Workflows

  thehackernews.com
  The Hacker News
• Megalodon: Mass GitHub Actions Secret Exfiltration Across 5,500+ Public Repositories

  stepsecurity.io
  StepSecurity
• Over 5,500 GitHub Repositories Infected in 'Megalodon' Supply Chain Attack

  securityweek.com
  SecurityWeek
• Megalodon chums the waters in 5.5K+ GitHub repo poisonings

  theregister.com
  The Register
• 'Megalodon' Malware Infects Thousands of GitHub Repos

  darkreading.com
  Dark Reading
• Four Credential-Harvesting Campaigns Hit Open Source Ecosystems in Two Weeks

  blog.gitguardian.com
  GitGuardian
• @tiledesk/tiledesk-server on npm

  npmjs.com
  npm