Malicious Code Injection in rino-poke54: A Threat to npm Ecosystem
Summary
MAL-2025-164701: Malicious code in rino-poke54 (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
Check if this vulnerability affects your application
Upload a manifest or SBOM and we'll show whether you're affected, plus every other risky package in the same scan.
No signup required · Results in about 60 seconds
Background
rino-poke54 is an npm package that has been identified as part of a malicious campaign targeting the npm registry. This package is associated with the tea.xyz token reward initiative, which aims to inflate developer reputation scores through the automatic generation and publication of derivative packages. The malicious nature of this package lies in its ability to modify its own metadata and republish itself under various names, thereby polluting the npm ecosystem.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability in rino-poke54 stems from its malicious code designed to manipulate package metadata. Specifically, it alters the package.json file to remove private flags, changes version numbers, and generates random package names. This behavior is intended to create a flood of derivative packages in the npm registry, which can mislead developers and compromise the integrity of the ecosystem. The origin of this vulnerability is linked to the tea.xyz token reward campaign, which exploits npm's publishing mechanisms to achieve its goals.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall rino-poke54If it arrived as a transitive dependency, remove the package that pulled it in, then reinstall.
Tip — Not sure whether your app is affected? Vulert can check the versions your app actually runs. Scan free →
Workaround
As a workaround, avoid using the rino-poke54 package and any other packages associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign. Regularly audit your npm packages using tools like npm audit to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities.
Conclusion
The rino-poke54 package poses a significant threat to the npm ecosystem due to its malicious code designed to manipulate package metadata and flood the registry with derivative packages. It is crucial for developers to remove this package from their projects and utilize tools to monitor for vulnerabilities.
See every vulnerability recorded for rino-poke54 →
FAQ
rino-poke54 is an npm package that has been identified as part of a malicious campaign aimed at inflating developer reputation scores through the automatic generation of derivative packages.
The vulnerability can lead to the pollution of the npm registry, making it difficult to trust packages and potentially introducing security risks into your project.
You should uninstall the rino-poke54 package immediately using the command npm uninstall rino-poke54 and audit your project for other vulnerabilities.
You can use tools like npm audit or services like Vulert, which monitors your package-lock.json for vulnerabilities in real-time without requiring code access.
Yes, you can use the Vulert playground at Vulert Scanner to check if your application is affected by this vulnerability without any signup.
