Compromised NPM Packages Checker

A Node.js security tool that identifies compromised NPM packages by comparing installed package versions against a curated database of known malicious releases. This tool performs version-specific detection to avoid false positives from safe versions of the same packages.

What This Tool Does

Version-specific detection: Compares installed package versions against a database of 252+ confirmed compromised package versions from multiple NPM supply chain attacks (including Shai-Hulud, s1ngularity, and popular packages campaigns)
Comprehensive scanning: Analyzes both package.json (dependencies, devDependencies, peerDependencies, optionalDependencies) and package-lock.json (complete dependency tree)
NPM lockfile compatibility: Supports both npm v6 (dependencies structure) and npm v7+ (packages structure) lockfile formats
Semver range handling: Processes common version ranges (^, ~, exact versions) without external dependencies
CI/CD integration: Returns appropriate exit codes (0 for safe, 1 for compromised packages found)
Auto-updating database: Maintains current threat intelligence by merging upstream sources with curated additions

What This Tool Does Not Do

Runtime analysis: Does not detect suspicious postinstall scripts, hash anomalies, or behavioral supply chain indicators beyond version matching
Complete security coverage: Does not replace comprehensive security scanners, SAST tools, or runtime protection mechanisms
Real-time threat detection: Security coverage is limited to the currency of the maintained compromised package database
Dependency vulnerability scanning: Does not identify known CVEs or security advisories unrelated to supply chain compromise

Platform Compatibility

Cross-platform: Runs on Windows, Linux, and macOS
Zero external dependencies: Uses only Node.js built-in modules (fs, path, https)
Flexible deployment: Direct execution, NPX usage, or module integration
CI/CD ready: Designed for automated pipeline integration with proper exit codes

Installation & Prerequisites

Requirements:

Node.js 12.0.0 or higher

Required files:

check-compromised-packages.js - Main script
compromised.json - Database of compromised packages

Method 1: Clone Repository (Recommended)

git clone <repository-url>
cd compromised-npm-packages-checker
chmod +x check-compromised-packages.js

Method 2: Direct Download

curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/your-repo/compromised-npm-packages-checker/main/check-compromised-packages.js
curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/your-repo/compromised-npm-packages-checker/main/compromised.json
chmod +x check-compromised-packages.js

Method 3: NPX (After Publishing)

npx compromised-npm-packages-checker package-lock.json

Usage

Basic Usage

node check-compromised-packages.js <path-to-package-file>

Examples

# Scan package.json (direct dependencies)
node check-compromised-packages.js package.json

# Scan package-lock.json (complete dependency tree - recommended)
node check-compromised-packages.js package-lock.jsonup   

# Disable emoji output for CI/CD environments
node check-compromised-packages.js --no-emoji package-lock.json

# Scan files in subdirectories
node check-compromised-packages.js frontend/package-lock.json
node check-compromised-packages.js backend/package.json

Command Line Options

--no-emoji       Disable emoji output for CI/CD environments
--no-log         Disable automatic log file creation
--log <file>     Save scan results to specific log file (disables auto-log)
--output <file>  Same as --log (alias for log output)
--help, -h       Show usage information

Examples

# Basic scan with automatic logging
node check-compromised-packages.js package.json
# Creates: scan-package-2025-11-25T12-30-45.txt

# Disable automatic logging
node check-compromised-packages.js --no-log package.json

# Custom log file name
node check-compromised-packages.js --log security-report.txt package.json

# CI/CD friendly (no emojis, no logs)
node check-compromised-packages.js --no-emoji --no-log package-lock.json

Output Examples

Safe Project

Analyzing: package-lock.json
==================================================
✅ No compromised packages found!

Compromised Packages Detected

Analyzing: package-lock.json
==================================================
⚠️  3 compromised package(s) found:

   1. chalk
      Installed Version: 5.6.1
      Status: COMPROMISED
      Compromised Versions: 5.6.1
      Path: node_modules/chalk

   2. debug  
      Installed Version: 4.4.2
      Status: COMPROMISED
      Compromised Versions: 4.4.2
      Path: node_modules/debug

   3. @ctrl/tinycolor
      Installed Version: 4.1.1
      Status: COMPROMISED
      Compromised Versions: 4.1.1, 4.1.2
      Path: node_modules/@ctrl/tinycolor

⚠️  SECURITY ADVISORY: These packages contain malicious code.
   Recommended action: Update to a safe version or remove the package.

CI/CD Mode (--no-emoji)

Analyzing: package-lock.json
==================================================
[WARNING] 2 compromised package(s) found:

   1. chalk
      Installed Version: 5.6.1
      Status: COMPROMISED
      Compromised Versions: 5.6.1
      Path: node_modules/chalk

[WARNING] SECURITY ADVISORY: These packages contain malicious code.
   Recommended action: Update to a safe version or remove the package.

Log File Output

When using the --log or --output option, the tool creates a structured text report:

Compromised NPM Packages Scan Report
Generated: 2025-11-25T11:39:54.381Z
Scanned file: package-lock.json
Tool: compromised-npm-packages-checker
Database: 1041 known compromised packages
================================================================================
SCAN STATUS: 3 COMPROMISED PACKAGE(S) FOUND

DETAILS:
1. Package: chalk
   Version: 5.6.1
   Compromised versions: 5.6.1
   Risk level: HIGH

2. Package: debug
   Version: 4.4.2
   Compromised versions: 4.4.2
   Risk level: HIGH

Total packages scanned: 15
Compromised packages found: 2

RECOMMENDATIONS:
- IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED: Remove or update compromised packages.
- Review your package-lock.json for any suspicious packages.
- Consider running additional security scans.
- UPDATE: chalk (currently 5.6.1)
- UPDATE: debug (currently 4.4.2)
================================================================================

This log format is ideal for:

Audit trails: Keep records of security scans
CI/CD integration: Parse results programmatically
Security reports: Share findings with team members
Compliance documentation: Maintain security scan history

Exit Codes

0: No compromised packages found or help displayed
1: Compromised packages detected, file not found, or error occurred

CI/CD Integration

GitHub Actions Example

- name: Check for compromised packages
  run: |
    node check-compromised-packages.js --no-emoji --log security-scan.txt package-lock.json
    if [ $? -eq 1 ]; then
      echo "::error::Compromised NPM packages detected"
      exit 1
    fi

- name: Upload security scan results
  uses: actions/upload-artifact@v3
  if: always()
  with:
    name: security-scan-results
    path: security-scan.txt

Shell Script Integration

#!/bin/bash
SCAN_RESULT_FILE="scan-$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%S).txt"
node check-compromised-packages.js --no-emoji --log "$SCAN_RESULT_FILE" package-lock.json
EXIT_CODE=$?

if [ $EXIT_CODE -eq 1 ]; then
    echo "Build failed: Compromised packages detected"
    echo "See detailed report: $SCAN_RESULT_FILE"
    exit 1
fi
echo "Security check passed"

Database Updates

Automatic Updates from Multiple Sources

The tool now supports updating from multiple authoritative sources:

# Update from all enabled sources (default)
node update-compromised-list.js

# Update from specific sources only
node update-compromised-list.js --only-wiz         # Wiz Security Research only
node update-compromised-list.js --only-sheets      # Google Sheets database only
node update-compromised-list.js --only-legacy      # Legacy source only

# Disable specific sources
node update-compromised-list.js --disable-legacy   # Skip legacy source
node update-compromised-list.js --disable-wiz      # Skip Wiz Security CSV
node update-compromised-list.js --disable-sheets   # Skip Google Sheets

# Get help
node update-compromised-list.js --help

Database Sources

The update script now pulls from these authoritative sources:

Wiz Security Research (Primary)
- URL: wiz-sec-public/wiz-research-iocs
- Format: CSV with package names and versions
- Coverage: Latest Shai-Hulud 2.0 and related campaigns
Google Sheets Database (Curated)
- URL: Custom Database
- Format: CSV export from collaborative spreadsheet
- Coverage: Community-curated threat intelligence
Legacy Source (Historical)
- URL: Cobenian/shai-hulud-detect
- Format: Text file with package:version format
- Coverage: Original Shai-Hulud and earlier campaigns

Update Process

The update script:

📥 Downloads latest compromised packages from all enabled sources
🔄 Merges new packages with existing curated database
📊 Preserves manually added packages and versions
💾 Updates compromised.json with comprehensive threat data
📈 Provides statistics on new packages and updates found per source

Current Database Coverage:

1,047+ compromised packages from multiple supply chain attack campaigns
Critical packages: chalk@5.6.1, debug@4.4.2 (September 8, 2025 attack with 2+ billion weekly downloads)
Extended campaigns: Multiple attack vectors including s1ngularity, popular packages, Shai-Hulud 2.0, and security advisories
Multi-source intelligence: Continuously updated from multiple authoritative threat intelligence sources

Technical Implementation

Supported Package File Formats

package.json: Scans dependencies, devDependencies, peerDependencies, optionalDependencies
package-lock.json v6: Processes dependencies structure recursively
package-lock.json v7+: Processes flat packages structure

Version Range Processing

The tool handles common semver ranges without external dependencies:

Exact versions: 1.2.3
Caret ranges: ^1.2.3 (extracts base version)
Tilde ranges: ~1.2.3 (extracts base version)
Complex ranges: Simplified processing focused on primary version

Limitations

Detection Scope

Version-based only: Only detects packages matching exact compromised versions in the database
No behavioral analysis: Does not analyze package behavior, file contents, or network activity
No CVE detection: Does not identify traditional vulnerabilities or security advisories
Database dependency: Detection accuracy depends on database currency and completeness

Technical Constraints

Lockfile dependency: Most accurate results require package-lock.json analysis
Network independence: Does not query external APIs or registries during scanning
Static analysis: No dynamic code execution or sandbox analysis

Maintenance Requirements

Manual updates: Compromised package database requires manual updates via update-compromised-list.js
External dependency: Relies on upstream Cobenian/shai-hulud-detect for data accuracy

Module Integration

The tool can be imported as a Node.js module:

const { checkForCompromisedPackages, isVersionCompromised } = require('./check-compromised-packages.js');

const result = checkForCompromisedPackages('package-lock.json');
if (!result.safe) {
  console.log(`Found ${result.total} compromised packages`);
  result.found.forEach(pkg => {
    console.log(`${pkg.name}@${pkg.version} is compromised`);
  });
}

Testing

The project includes a comprehensive test suite covering various scenarios:

# Run all tests
cd testcases
node run-tests.js

# Run individual test categories
node ../check-compromised-packages.js safe/clean-package.json        # Should return 0
node ../check-compromised-packages.js compromised/chalk-attack.json  # Should return 1
node ../check-compromised-packages.js mixed/partial-compromise.json  # Should return 1

Test Coverage:

✅ Safe packages (no compromised versions)
⚠️ Compromised packages (various attack vectors)
🔄 Mixed scenarios (partial compromise)
🧩 Edge cases (empty dependencies, complex versions)
📦 Both npm v6 and v7+ lockfile formats

Contributing

Database updates: Submit discoveries to Cobenian/shai-hulud-detect
Bug reports: Create issues with reproduction steps and environment details
Feature requests: Propose enhancements with specific use cases

License

MIT License - See LICENSE file for details.

Security Notice: This tool provides point-in-time detection based on known compromised package versions. It should be used as part of a comprehensive security strategy including dependency scanning, SAST, runtime protection, and regular security audits.

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 8 Commits
testcases		testcases
LICENSE		LICENSE
Public Sha1-Hulud - Koi.csv		Public Sha1-Hulud - Koi.csv
README.md		README.md
check-compromised-packages.js		check-compromised-packages.js
compromised-backup.json		compromised-backup.json
compromised.json		compromised.json
package.json		package.json
update-compromised-list.js		update-compromised-list.js

License

cbauerdev/compromised-npm-packages-checker

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Compromised NPM Packages Checker

What This Tool Does

What This Tool Does Not Do

Platform Compatibility

Installation & Prerequisites

Method 1: Clone Repository (Recommended)

Method 2: Direct Download

Method 3: NPX (After Publishing)

Usage

Basic Usage

Examples

Command Line Options

Examples

Output Examples

Safe Project

Compromised Packages Detected

CI/CD Mode (--no-emoji)

Log File Output

Exit Codes

CI/CD Integration

GitHub Actions Example

Shell Script Integration

Database Updates

Automatic Updates from Multiple Sources

Database Sources

Update Process

Technical Implementation

Supported Package File Formats

Version Range Processing

Limitations

Detection Scope

Technical Constraints

Maintenance Requirements

Module Integration

Testing

Contributing

License

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