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Security audit

Skill Update Helper

Security checks for vulnerabilities and agentic risk

Overview

This skill is an updater that does what it says, but it can schedule recurring bulk updates to installed skills without clearly requiring a preview or user confirmation first.

Install only if you want this skill to help maintain installed skills. Before enabling any scheduled update task, prefer a dry-run or notification-only workflow, and require explicit approval before applying `clawhub update --all`, because it can change multiple installed skills and agent behavior at once.

Vulnerability Patterns
  • Skill Instruction HijackingAlters the agent's session goals or safety constraints when the skill loads
  • Agent Memory PoisoningWrites attacker-controlled rules into memory that affect later sessions
  • Remote Payload Retrieval and ExecutionFetches external code whose behavior can change after review
  • Embedded Malicious CodeShips malicious scripts inside the skill and executes them locally
  • Unauthorized Access and Privilege EscalationObtains permissions beyond the task's legitimate needs
Vulnerability Patterns
  • Rogue AgentSelf-Modification, Session Persistence
  • Prompt InjectionInstruction Override, Hidden Instructions, Exfiltration Commands
  • Data ExfiltrationExternal Transmission, Env Variable Harvesting, File System Enumeration
  • Privilege EscalationExcessive Permissions, Sudo/Root Execution, Credential Access
  • Supply ChainUnpinned Dependencies, External Script Fetching, Obfuscated Code
Findings (3)

Self-Modification

High
Category
Rogue Agent
Confidence
85% confidence
Finding

Skill modifies its own code, configuration, or behavior at runtime. Self-modification enables an agent to escalate privileges, disable safety constraints, or install persistent backdoors.

Content

Scanner excerpt · references/summary-examples.md (reported line 38)May include surrounding context.

  • skill-b: network timeout while fetching package

Recommended next step:

  • retry clawhub update skill-b later
text

Missing User Warnings

Medium
Category
Not specified by scanner
Confidence
90% confidence
Finding

The skill explicitly instructs applying clawhub update --all, which can modify the local environment and installed skills in bulk without requiring an explicit confirmation or warning about side effects. In an agent-driven workflow, this increases the chance of unintended changes, compatibility regressions, or disruption if the action is executed automatically rather than proposed first.

Content

No source excerpt is available for this finding.

Missing User Warnings

Medium
Category
Not specified by scanner
Confidence
93% confidence
Finding

The guide instructs the agent to run clawhub update --all, which performs state-changing bulk updates, without requiring an explicit warning, confirmation, or dry-run-first step at the moment of execution. In an agent setting, this can cause unintended changes across multiple installed skills, increasing the risk of disruption, incompatible updates, or user surprise if the user asked only for information or loosely phrased maintenance help.

Content

No source excerpt is available for this finding.

Static analysis

No suspicious patterns detected.