T08 · Insecure Dependencies
- Location
package.json:27- Finding
Unreviewable Third-Party Runtime Dependencies
- Content
View full analysis
Vulnerability Details
File Location:
package.json, lines 27–30
Vulnerability Type: Third-party supply-chain exposure through unpinned dependencies
Risk Level: MediumVulnerable Code:
json "dependencies": { "provincial-education-project": "^1.0.0", "municipal-education-project": "^1.0.0" }Technical Analysis
The package delegates its substantive functionality to two external npm dependencies whose source code is not included in the audited project. Consequently, their runtime behavior, transitive dependencies, and installation lifecycle scripts cannot be verified from the supplied artifact.
Both dependencies use caret version ranges. For a
1.xpackage, a range such as^1.0.0permits npm to resolve later compatible minor and patch releases. This means that the code installed in the future may differ from the code originally reviewed. If a dependency publisher account, package release process, or transitive dependency is compromised, an attacker could distribute malicious code under a version accepted by these ranges.No lockfile or integrity metadata was supplied to constrain dependency resolution to specific reviewed artifacts. No malicious behavior in either dependency is confirmed by the available files; the finding concerns the unresolved supply-chain trust boundary.
Attack Path
- An attacker compromises the publishing account, release process, or dependency chain of one of the declared packages.
- The attacker publishes a malicious version that remains compatible with the declared caret range.
- A user installs or updates this project without a lockfile fixing the previously reviewed dependency versions.
- npm resolves and downloads the malicious compatible release.
- Malicious dependency code may execute through an npm lifecycle script during installation or when the dependency is loaded by the skill.
- The payload operates with the permissions of the user or ...[truncated 745 chars]
- Remediation
View remediation
Remediation Suggestions
- Pin both dependencies to exact, reviewed versions instead of caret ranges.
- Commit an npm lockfile and require reproducible installation with
npm ci. - Verify lockfile integrity hashes and review all transitive dependencies before release.
- Confirm the package names, registry ownership, maintainers, source repositories, and provenance to reduce dependency-confusion and package-takeover risk.
- Audit dependency source code and npm lifecycle scripts. Where operationally possible, install with lifecycle scripts disabled.
- Use automated dependency and provenance scanning in CI, and block unexpected dependency or integrity changes.
- Prefer including and auditing the required implementation in the project itself when the external packages are not independently verifiable.
- Run installation and skill execution in a least-privileged, isolated environment without unnecessary credentials, sensitive filesystem mounts, or unrestricted network access.