Malicious Code Injection in confidential_catfish-apptea Package
Summary
MAL-2025-100837: Malicious code in confidential_catfish-apptea (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
The confidential_catfish-apptea package is part of the tea.xyz token reward campaign, which has been associated with a series of malicious npm packages. These packages are designed to inflate developer reputation scores by automatically generating and publishing derivative packages with randomized names. This behavior compromises the integrity of the npm registry and can lead to unintended consequences for developers using these packages.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability originates from the malicious design of the confidential_catfish-apptea package, which includes scripts that modify the package.json file to remove private flags, alter version numbers, and generate random package names. This allows the package to continuously republish variants, polluting the npm registry and potentially leading to security risks for developers who unknowingly use these compromised packages. The malicious payload can also affect the reputation of legitimate developers by flooding the registry with low-quality packages.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall confidential_catfish-appteaIf it arrived as a transitive dependency, remove the package that pulled it in, then reinstall.
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Workaround
As a temporary workaround, you can avoid using the confidential_catfish-apptea package and look for alternative packages that provide similar functionality without the associated risks. Additionally, consider using npm audit to identify and address vulnerabilities in your project.
Conclusion
The confidential_catfish-apptea package poses a significant security risk due to its malicious code designed to manipulate the npm registry. It is crucial for developers to remove this package from their projects and monitor their dependencies for vulnerabilities to maintain the integrity of their applications.
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FAQ
It is an npm package associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign, known for containing malicious code.
Using this package can lead to security risks, including the pollution of the npm registry and potential reputation damage for developers.
You can use the Vulert platform to monitor and alert for open-source vulnerabilities in your software. Visit Vulert Scanner to check your application without any signup.
Uninstall the package immediately and look for alternatives. Regularly audit your dependencies for vulnerabilities.
Yes, tools like Vulert can help monitor your dependencies for vulnerabilities in real-time using just the package-lock.json file.
