Malicious Code Injection in rino-poke56: A Threat to npm Ecosystem
Summary
MAL-2025-164703: Malicious code in rino-poke56 (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-poke56 is an npm package that has been identified as part of a malicious campaign targeting the npm registry. This package is designed to exploit the npm ecosystem by generating and publishing derivative packages with randomized names, which can inflate developer reputation scores for token rewards. The malicious nature of this package poses a significant risk to developers and users relying on npm for package management.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability in rino-poke56 originates from its association with the tea.xyz token reward campaign. It contains scripts that automatically modify the package.json file, removing private flags and changing version numbers. Additionally, it generates random package names and continuously republishes these variants, polluting the npm registry. This behavior can lead to compromised developer accounts and a degraded trust in the npm ecosystem, as it floods the registry with potentially harmful packages.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall rino-poke56If 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 temporary workaround, you can avoid using the rino-poke56 package and any other packages that may be associated with the tea.xyz campaign. Regularly audit your package-lock.json file to identify and remove any malicious packages.
Conclusion
The rino-poke56 package poses a significant threat to the npm ecosystem due to its malicious behavior of modifying package files and flooding the registry. It is crucial for developers to remain vigilant, remove affected packages, and utilize tools like Vulert to monitor for vulnerabilities.
See every vulnerability recorded for rino-poke56 →
FAQ
rino-poke56 is an npm package identified as part of a malicious campaign that exploits the npm ecosystem by publishing derivative packages.
The vulnerability can lead to the pollution of the npm registry with malicious packages, potentially compromising your project's security and integrity.
You should remove the rino-poke56 package from your project immediately and check for any other affected packages.
You can use Vulert, which monitors and alerts for open-source vulnerabilities in your software by analyzing your package-lock.json file.
Yes, you can use the Vulert playground at Vulert Scanner to check if your application is affected by this vulnerability without requiring any signup.
