Malicious Code Injection in Difficult Dragon Z3n Package - npm Vulnerability
Summary
MAL-2025-94021: Malicious code in difficult_dragon_z3n (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
Check if this vulnerability affects your application
Upload a manifest or SBOM and we'll show whether you're affected, plus every other risky package in the same scan.
No signup required · Results in about 60 seconds
Background
The 'difficult_dragon_z3n' 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, often with randomized names, to inflate developer reputation scores for token rewards. Its functionality is compromised by malicious scripts that manipulate package metadata.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability stems from the presence of malicious code within the 'difficult_dragon_z3n' package. This code modifies the package.json file to remove private flags, alters version numbers, and generates random package names. The malicious payload continuously republishes these variants, polluting the npm registry and potentially leading to security risks for developers who inadvertently use these compromised packages.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall difficult_dragon_z3nIf it arrived as a transitive dependency, remove the package that pulled it in, then reinstall.
Tip — Not sure whether your app is affected? Vulert can check the versions your app actually runs. Scan free →
Workaround
As a temporary workaround, you can remove the 'difficult_dragon_z3n' package from your project by executing: npm uninstall difficult_dragon_z3n. This will prevent any malicious code from executing in your environment until a fix is applied.
Conclusion
The 'difficult_dragon_z3n' package contains a serious vulnerability due to malicious code that alters package metadata and repopulates the npm registry with compromised packages. It is crucial to take immediate action by updating or removing the package to safeguard your project.
See every vulnerability recorded for difficult_dragon_z3n →
FAQ
It is an npm package associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign, designed to generate and publish derivative packages.
The vulnerability can lead to the pollution of the npm registry and may compromise your project's integrity by introducing malicious code.
You should uninstall the package immediately and check for any updates or patches that may address the vulnerability.
Yes, you can use Vulert, which monitors your package-lock.json file for open-source vulnerabilities in real-time without requiring code access.
You can use the Vulert playground at Vulert Scanner to check if your application is affected by this vulnerability without any signup.
