Malicious Code Injection in Successive Cuckoo Z3N Package
Summary
MAL-2025-96853: Malicious code in successive_cuckoo_z3n (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
The 'successive_cuckoo_z3n' package is part of the npm ecosystem and is associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign. This package is designed to facilitate token rewards by generating and publishing derivative packages with randomized names. However, it has been compromised to include malicious code that modifies package metadata and floods the npm registry with unwanted variants.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability originates from the malicious code embedded in the 'successive_cuckoo_z3n' package. This code alters the package.json file by removing private flags, changing version numbers, and generating random package names. The continuous republishing of these variants can lead to pollution of the npm registry, affecting developers' reputations and potentially introducing security risks into applications that depend on these packages.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall successive_cuckoo_z3nIf 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 prevent the installation of this malicious package by using npm's package-lock.json file to lock your dependencies. Additionally, consider using npm audit to identify and address vulnerabilities in your project.
Conclusion
The 'successive_cuckoo_z3n' package contains malicious code that poses a significant risk to developers and their projects. It is crucial to remove this package and monitor your dependencies for vulnerabilities to maintain the integrity and security of your applications.
See every vulnerability recorded for successive_cuckoo_z3n →
FAQ
It is an npm package associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign, designed to generate and publish derivative packages.
The malicious code modifies your package.json, removes private flags, and floods the npm registry, which can harm your project's reputation and security.
You can use Vulert, which monitors and alerts for open-source vulnerabilities in real-time. Check your application using the Vulert playground at Vulert Scanner.
Remove the 'successive_cuckoo_z3n' package from your project and check for any dependencies that may have been affected.
Regularly audit your dependencies using tools like npm audit and monitor for vulnerabilities with services like Vulert.
