Malicious Code Injection in moaning_macaw-smiletea Package
Summary
MAL-2025-105911: Malicious code in moaning_macaw-smiletea (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
The moaning_macaw-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, often with randomized names, to 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, which includes autopublish scripts that modify the package.json file to remove private flags and alter version numbers. This allows the package to generate random names and continuously republish variants, leading to pollution of the npm registry. The ramifications include potential security risks for developers who unknowingly use these packages, as they may inadvertently introduce malicious code into their projects.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall moaning_macaw-smileteaIf it arrived as a transitive dependency, remove the package that pulled it in, then reinstall.
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Workaround
As a workaround, avoid using the moaning_macaw-smiletea package and monitor your project for any dependencies that may have been affected by this vulnerability. You can also use tools like Vulert to monitor your package-lock.json for vulnerabilities in real-time.
Conclusion
The moaning_macaw-smiletea package has been identified as containing malicious code that can compromise the security of projects using it. It is crucial to uninstall this package and monitor your dependencies for any vulnerabilities. Utilizing tools like Vulert can help in maintaining the security of your applications.
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FAQ
It is an npm package associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign, designed to generate and publish derivative packages.
The vulnerability can introduce malicious code into your project, potentially compromising its security and integrity.
You should uninstall the package immediately using 'npm uninstall moaning_macaw-smiletea' and check for any dependencies that may be affected.
Yes, you can use Vulert, which monitors your package-lock.json for open-source vulnerabilities in real-time without requiring code access or installation.
Yes, you can use the Vulert playground at Vulert Scanner to check if your application is affected by this vulnerability without signing up.
