diff --git a/syft/pkg/cataloger/javascript/parse_node_binary.go b/syft/pkg/cataloger/javascript/parse_node_binary.go
index e7933fcbd..51ec307c0 100644
--- a/syft/pkg/cataloger/javascript/parse_node_binary.go
+++ b/syft/pkg/cataloger/javascript/parse_node_binary.go
@@ -36,8 +36,8 @@ func parseNodeBinary(_ source.FileResolver, _ *generic.Environment, reader sourc
 	// TODO add node specific metadata to the packages to help with vulnerability matching
 	if p != nil {
 		p.Language = pkg.JavaScript
+		p.SetID()
 		return []pkg.Package{*p}, nil, nil
 	}
-	p.SetID()
 	return nil, nil, nil
 }