Malicious Code Injection in Mysterious Finch AppTea Package
Summary
MAL-2025-106071: Malicious code in mysterious_finch-apptea (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
The 'mysterious_finch-apptea' package is part of the tea.xyz token reward campaign, which has been known to flood the npm ecosystem with malicious packages. These packages are designed to inflate developer reputation scores by automatically generating and publishing derivative packages with randomized names. The functionality of this package is compromised due to its malicious intent, which poses a significant risk to developers and users relying on its integrity.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability in the 'mysterious_finch-apptea' package stems from its malicious code that modifies the package.json file to remove private flags, alters version numbers, and generates random package names. This behavior is intended to pollute the npm registry and can lead to the unintentional installation of compromised packages by developers. The origin of this vulnerability is linked to the tea.xyz token reward campaign, which employs autopublish scripts to automate the creation of these malicious packages.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall mysterious_finch-appteaIf it arrived as a transitive dependency, remove the package that pulled it in, then reinstall.
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Workaround
As a workaround, you can avoid using the 'mysterious_finch-apptea' package altogether. If it is already included in your project, remove it by running: npm uninstall mysterious_finch-apptea. Additionally, consider using tools like Vulert to monitor your package-lock.json for vulnerabilities.
Conclusion
The 'mysterious_finch-apptea' package poses a significant security risk due to its malicious code designed to manipulate the npm registry. It is crucial for developers to remove this package and utilize monitoring tools like Vulert to safeguard their projects against similar vulnerabilities in the future.
See every vulnerability recorded for mysterious_finch-apptea →
FAQ
It is a package associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign, known for containing malicious code that affects npm packages.
This vulnerability can lead to the installation of compromised packages, potentially exposing your project to security risks and reputation damage.
You should immediately uninstall the 'mysterious_finch-apptea' package and monitor your project for any unusual behavior.
Yes, Vulert allows you to monitor and alert for open-source vulnerabilities in your software using just your package-lock.json file.
Regularly audit your dependencies, use tools like Vulert for real-time monitoring, and stay updated on security advisories.
