Malicious Code Injection in Extended Ermine Z3N Package - npm Vulnerability
Summary
MAL-2025-102410: Malicious code in extended_ermine_z3n (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
The 'extended_ermine_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, which can inflate developer reputation scores for token rewards. However, it has been compromised to include malicious scripts that manipulate package metadata.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability in 'extended_ermine_z3n' stems from malicious code that modifies the package.json file by removing private flags, altering version numbers, and generating random package names. This behavior is intended to pollute the npm registry and can lead to security risks, including the potential for unauthorized access to sensitive data and the spread of further malicious packages.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall extended_ermine_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 'extended_ermine_z3n' package from your project by executing: 'npm uninstall extended_ermine_z3n'. This will prevent any malicious scripts from executing until a secure version is available.
Conclusion
The 'extended_ermine_z3n' package has been identified as containing malicious code that compromises the integrity of npm projects. It is crucial to take immediate action by updating or removing the package to safeguard your applications from potential threats.
See every vulnerability recorded for extended_ermine_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 unauthorized modifications of your package metadata and potentially expose your project to further security risks.
Yes, you can use Vulert, which monitors and alerts for open-source vulnerabilities in your software using just package-lock.json.
You can use the Vulert playground at Vulert Scanner to check for vulnerabilities without requiring any signup.
If an immediate update is not possible, consider removing the package as a temporary measure to mitigate risks.
