Malicious Code Injection in leading_prawn_z3n Package
Summary
MAL-2025-95201: Malicious code in leading_prawn_z3n (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
The leading_prawn_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 are often used to inflate developer reputation scores for token rewards. Its primary functionality revolves around creating and managing these packages, but it has been compromised to include malicious scripts.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability in the leading_prawn_z3n package stems from its inclusion in a malicious campaign that modifies the package.json file to remove private flags, alters version numbers, and generates random package names. This behavior leads to the continuous republishing of variants, polluting the npm registry and potentially compromising the integrity of other packages. The malicious payload can cause significant issues for developers relying on the npm registry for secure package management.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall leading_prawn_z3nIf it arrived as a transitive dependency, remove the package that pulled it in, then reinstall.
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Workaround
As a temporary measure, you can prevent the installation of the leading_prawn_z3n package by adding it to your project's .npmrc file with the following line: 'package-lock=false'. This will help avoid the installation of this malicious package until a fix is available.
Conclusion
The leading_prawn_z3n package has been identified as containing malicious code that compromises the integrity of the npm registry. It is crucial for developers to remove this package from their projects and monitor for updates. Utilizing tools like Vulert can help in identifying vulnerabilities in your project effectively.
See every vulnerability recorded for leading_prawn_z3n →
FAQ
The leading_prawn_z3n package is an npm package associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign, designed to automate the generation and publication of derivative packages.
This vulnerability can lead to the pollution of the npm registry, potentially compromising the integrity of your project and other packages you depend on.
You should remove the leading_prawn_z3n package from your project immediately and check for any updates or patches that may be released.
Yes, you can use Vulert, which monitors and alerts in real-time for open-source vulnerabilities using just your package-lock.json file. You can check your application for vulnerabilities using the Vulert playground without any signup.
You can add 'package-lock=false' to your .npmrc file to prevent the installation of the leading_prawn_z3n package until a fix is available.
