Malicious Code Injection in rear_flyingfish_z3n Package
Summary
MAL-2025-89900: Malicious code in rear_flyingfish_z3n (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
The rear_flyingfish_z3n package is part of the npm ecosystem, which is widely used for JavaScript package management. This package has been identified as part of a malicious campaign that aims to exploit npm's publishing system. It is designed to automatically generate and publish derivative packages with randomized names, which can lead to reputation inflation for developers involved in the tea.xyz token reward campaign.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability originates from the package's malicious code that modifies the package.json file to remove private flags and changes version numbers. It generates random package names, often themed around Indonesian culture, and continuously republishes these variants to pollute the npm registry. This behavior can lead to significant security risks, including the potential for dependency confusion attacks and the compromise of developer reputation.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall rear_flyingfish_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 avoid using the rear_flyingfish_z3n package and instead look for alternative packages that provide similar functionality without the associated risks. Additionally, consider using npm audit to check for vulnerabilities in your project's dependencies.
Conclusion
The rear_flyingfish_z3n 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 from their projects and monitor their dependencies for vulnerabilities. Utilizing tools like Vulert can help maintain the security of your applications.
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FAQ
It is an npm package that has been identified as part of a malicious campaign to exploit the npm registry.
The vulnerability can lead to the injection of malicious code into your project, potentially compromising security and developer reputation.
You should uninstall the package immediately and check your project for any other vulnerabilities.
You can use tools like Vulert, which monitors your package-lock.json for open-source vulnerabilities in real-time.
Yes, you can use the Vulert playground at Vulert Scanner to check for vulnerabilities in your application without any signup.
