Malicious Code Injection in Significant Halibut Z3N Package
Summary
MAL-2025-108664: Malicious code in significant_halibut_z3n (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
The 'significant_halibut_z3n' package is part of a series of npm packages that emerged during the tea.xyz token reward campaign. These packages are designed to automate the generation and publication of derivative packages, often with randomized names, to inflate developer reputation scores for token rewards. This functionality, while initially appearing benign, has been exploited to introduce malicious behavior.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability in the 'significant_halibut_z3n' package stems from its malicious payload that modifies the package.json file. It removes private flags, alters version numbers, and generates random package names, which leads to the continuous republishing of these variants. This behavior not only pollutes the npm registry but also poses a risk to developers who may unknowingly use these compromised packages, potentially leading to security breaches in their applications.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall significant_halibut_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 remove the 'significant_halibut_z3n' package from your project by executing the command: 'npm uninstall significant_halibut_z3n'. This will prevent any malicious code from executing until a secure version is available.
Conclusion
The 'significant_halibut_z3n' package contains a serious vulnerability that can lead to the injection of malicious code into applications. It is crucial to update or remove the package to protect your projects. Utilizing tools like Vulert can help monitor and alert you to such vulnerabilities in real-time.
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FAQ
It is an npm package that was part of a token reward campaign, designed to automate the creation and publication of derivative packages.
The vulnerability can lead to the introduction of malicious code into your application, potentially compromising its security and integrity.
Yes, you can use tools like Vulert, which monitors your package-lock.json file for open-source vulnerabilities in real-time.
You can use the Vulert playground at Vulert Scanner to check if your application is affected without needing to sign up.
If an immediate update is not possible, consider uninstalling the package as a temporary measure to mitigate risks.
