Malicious Code Injection in empty_stingray-smiletea Package
Summary
MAL-2025-102077: Malicious code in empty_stingray-smiletea (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
The empty_stingray-smiletea package is part of the npm ecosystem and is associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign. This package is designed to facilitate the 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.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability originates from the package's design to include autopublish scripts that modify the package.json file. These modifications remove private flags, alter version numbers, and generate random package names, leading to pollution of the npm registry. The malicious payload can potentially affect developers by inflating their reputation scores with illegitimate packages, and it poses a risk to the integrity of the npm ecosystem.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall empty_stingray-smileteaIf 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 empty_stingray-smiletea package from your project by executing the following command: npm uninstall empty_stingray-smiletea. This will prevent any malicious code from executing while you seek a permanent fix.
Conclusion
The empty_stingray-smiletea package contains a significant vulnerability due to malicious code that alters package configurations and can lead to npm registry pollution. It is crucial to update or remove this package to maintain the integrity of your projects.
See every vulnerability recorded for empty_stingray-smiletea →
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 injection of malicious code, which may compromise your project's integrity and inflate developer reputation scores illegitimately.
You can use Vulert, which monitors and alerts for open-source vulnerabilities in real-time. Visit Vulert Scanner to check your application without any signup.
If you cannot update the package, consider removing it from your project as a temporary measure to mitigate risks.
Detailed information can be found in the vulnerability report and the package's repository on npm.
