Malicious Code Injection in curly_mosquito-excellentdev Package
Summary
MAL-2025-101159: Malicious code in curly_mosquito-excellentdev (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
The curly_mosquito-excellentdev package is part of the npm ecosystem and is associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign. This package is designed to facilitate the automatic generation and publication of derivative packages, which can inflate developer reputation scores for token rewards. However, it has been identified as containing malicious code that compromises its integrity and the security of applications that depend on it.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability stems from the presence of malicious code within the curly_mosquito-excellentdev package. This code modifies the package.json file by removing private flags, altering version numbers, and generating random package names. It continuously republishes these variants to pollute the npm registry, which can lead to security risks for developers and users relying on this package. The origin of this issue is linked to the tea.xyz token reward campaign, which employs such tactics to manipulate the npm ecosystem.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall curly_mosquito-excellentdevIf 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 curly_mosquito-excellentdev package and replace it with a trusted alternative. Additionally, you can monitor your package-lock.json file for any unauthorized changes that may indicate the presence of malicious packages.
Conclusion
The curly_mosquito-excellentdev package contains malicious code that poses significant risks to applications using it. It is crucial to remove this package and monitor for any updates. Utilizing tools like Vulert can help maintain the security of your projects by alerting you to open-source vulnerabilities.
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FAQ
It is an npm package associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign, designed to automatically generate and publish derivative packages.
The malicious code modifies your package.json, potentially leading to security vulnerabilities and unauthorized package republishing.
You should immediately remove the curly_mosquito-excellentdev package from your project and monitor for any updates or patches.
You can use tools like Vulert, which monitors your package-lock.json file for vulnerabilities in real-time without requiring code access.
Yes, you can use the Vulert playground at Vulert Scanner to check if your application is affected by this vulnerability without any signup.
