# WithSecureLabs/python-exe-unpacker

A helper script for unpacking and decompiling EXEs compiled from python code.

Repository: https://github.com/WithSecureLabs/python-exe-unpacker
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/python-exe-unpacker
Language: Python
License: GPL-3.0
License Family: copyleft
Topics: countercept, unpacker
Last push: 2024-08-15T14:36:28+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 32/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 3194, "days_push": 748, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1013, forks 351 (observed 2026-08-28T04:03:13.502940+00:00)

## What it is
A Python CLI script that unpacks and decompiles Windows EXEs compiled from Python code, supporting executables built with py2exe and PyInstaller. It glues together community tools and uses YARA rules to detect Python-compiled executables, including handling encrypted PyInstaller bytecode.

## Use cases
- unpack pyinstaller exe
- decompile python executable back to source
- analyze malware written in python
- extract pyc files from py2exe binary
- detect if an exe was compiled from python
- reverse engineer pyinstaller-packed malware sample

## When to choose
- analyzing a suspected Python-compiled Windows executable during malware triage
- you need to recover Python source from py2exe or PyInstaller binaries
- you want automated YARA-based detection of Python packers

## When to avoid
- the executable was packed with tools other than py2exe or PyInstaller
- you need actively maintained support for modern PyInstaller versions
- you need a GUI-based reverse engineering suite rather than a script

## Facets
- artifact type: cli-tool
- maturity: maintenance
- function: reverse-engineering, parser, security, cli
- domain: security, reverse-engineering, developer-tools
- platform: python, cli, windows
- tags: malware-analysis, pyinstaller, py2exe, decompiler, unpacker, yara, command-line, linux, macos

## Member repositories
- WithSecureLabs/python-exe-unpacker (main) score 32

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:03:13.502940+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T07:11:37.848268+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/WithSecureLabs/python-exe-unpacker (fetched 2026-08-28T04:03:13.502940+00:00, sha 55be7ce29157)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.