Malicious Code Injection in Vocal Herring Z3N Package
Summary
MAL-2025-91981: Malicious code in vocal_herring_z3n (npm). Affected versions are not published. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
The 'vocal_herring_z3n' package is part of the npm ecosystem and is associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign. This package is designed to facilitate the automatic generation and publishing of derivative packages, which can inflate developer reputation scores for token rewards. However, it has been identified as containing malicious code that compromises its integrity and the security of the npm registry.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability in the 'vocal_herring_z3n' package stems from its inclusion in a campaign that floods the npm registry with malicious packages. The malicious payload modifies the package.json file by removing private flags, altering version numbers, and generating random package names. This behavior leads to the continuous republishing of variants, which pollutes the npm registry and can potentially harm developers relying on legitimate packages.
How To Fix
This package is malicious. Remove it and rotate any credentials it could have accessed.
npm uninstall vocal_herring_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 'vocal_herring_z3n' package and replace it with a trusted alternative. Additionally, you can monitor your package-lock.json file for any unauthorized changes and remove any suspicious packages.
Conclusion
The 'vocal_herring_z3n' package has been identified as containing malicious code that compromises the npm registry. It is crucial for developers to remove this package and monitor their dependencies for vulnerabilities. Utilizing tools like Vulert can help maintain the security of your projects.
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FAQ
The 'vocal_herring_z3n' package is an npm package associated with the tea.xyz token reward campaign, designed to automate the publishing of derivative packages.
This vulnerability can lead to the pollution of the npm registry, potentially compromising the integrity of your project and exposing it to malicious code.
You should remove the 'vocal_herring_z3n' package from your project and monitor for any updates or patches that may be released.
Yes, Vulert can monitor your project for open-source vulnerabilities in real-time using your package-lock.json file, providing alerts for any issues.
Yes, you can use the Vulert playground at Vulert Scanner to check if your application is affected by this vulnerability without needing to sign up.
Habilume
Habit tracker with a companion that grows with you
Complete habits, earn Lume Points, and watch your Lume grow as you stay consistent.
