Malicious Code Injection in early_bee_z3n Package - npm Vulnerability
Summary
MAL-2025-94157: Malicious code in early_bee_z3n (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
The early_bee_z3n package is part of the npm ecosystem and is associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign. This package is designed to facilitate token rewards through various scripts that automatically publish derivative packages. However, it has been identified as containing malicious code that compromises its integrity and the npm registry.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability originates from the early_bee_z3n package, which includes scripts that modify the package.json file to remove private flags, alter version numbers, and generate random package names. This behavior is intended to inflate developer reputation scores for token rewards, leading to pollution of the npm registry. The malicious payload can potentially affect developers by introducing unwanted packages and compromising the security of their applications.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall early_bee_z3nIf 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 remove the early_bee_z3n package from your project by executing: npm uninstall early_bee_z3n. This will prevent any malicious code from executing in your environment until a secure version is available.
Conclusion
The early_bee_z3n package has been identified as containing malicious code that poses a significant risk to developers and the npm registry. It is crucial to take immediate action by updating or removing the package to safeguard your applications.
See every vulnerability recorded for early_bee_z3n →
FAQ
The early_bee_z3n package is an npm package associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign, designed to automate the publishing of derivative packages.
The vulnerability can lead to the introduction of unwanted packages and compromise the security of your application by modifying critical files like package.json.
Yes, you can use Vulert, which monitors and alerts in real-time for open-source vulnerabilities in your software by analyzing your package-lock.json.
You can use the Vulert playground at Vulert Scanner to check if your application is affected by this vulnerability without needing to sign up.
If you cannot update the package, consider removing it from your project as a temporary measure to mitigate the risk.
