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Security audit

Zhihu

Security checks for vulnerabilities and agentic risk

Overview

The Zhihu features fit the stated purpose, but setup can execute downloaded code without a separate approval step.

Review and approve the CLI installation separately before allowing the setup fallback. Check its agent-skill installation and synchronization behavior. Expect OOMOL to mediate account access and selected uploads to reach Zhihu; retain the skill's confirmation requirements for writes. The complete bundled artifact was inspected, but downloaded installer contents and hosted implementation were not verified. No malicious behavior was established.

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
  • Privilege EscalationExcessive Permissions, Sudo/Root Execution, Credential Access
  • Supply ChainUnpinned Dependencies, External Script Fetching, Obfuscated Code
  • Excessive AgencyUnrestricted Tool Access, Autonomous Decision Making, Scope Creep
  • Output HandlingUnvalidated Output Injection, Cross-Context Output, Unbounded Output
  • MCP Tool PoisoningHidden Instructions, Unicode Deception, Parameter Description Injection
Findings (9)

Description-Behavior Mismatch

High
Category
MCP Tool Poisoning
Confidence
95% confidence
Finding

The supplied code performs remote installer execution rather than implementing the declared Zhihu functionality. Installation could be a supporting implementation detail, but this chunk establishes no relationship between the installer and Zhihu access. The remote script's contents and any further behavior cannot be determined from the supplied code.

Content

No source excerpt is available for this finding.

Credential Access

High
Category
Privilege Escalation
Confidence
70% confidence
Finding

Code accesses credential files (SSH keys, AWS credentials, etc.). This could indicate credential theft attempts.

Content

Scanner excerpt · SKILL.md (reported line 40)May include surrounding context.

md
## Available actions

- `favlist_contents` — List public content in one collection owned by the current Access Secret account.
- `get_pdf_parse` — Get the status and temporary result URL for a Zhihu PDF parsing task.
- `get_ppt_generation` — Get the status and temporary PPTX download URL for a PPT generation task.
- `global_search` — Search the global web index exposed by Zhihu Open Platform.

Credential Access

High
Category
Privilege Escalation
Confidence
70% confidence
Finding

Code accesses credential files (SSH keys, AWS credentials, etc.). This could indicate credential theft attempts.

Content

Scanner excerpt · SKILL.md (reported line 51)May include surrounding context.

md
- `knowledge_search` — Retrieve relevant document fragments from Zhida knowledge bases with RAG search.
- `submit_pdf_parse` — Download a PDF from an HTTP URL, upload it to Zhihu, and submit an asynchronous parse task. [write]
- `submit_ppt_generation` — Submit a Zhihu answer or article URL for asynchronous PPTX generation. [write]
- `user_collections` — List the current Access Secret owner's recently favorited public content.
- `user_contents` — List the current Access Secret owner's public Zhihu creations.
- `user_favlists` — List the current Access Secret owner's public Zhihu collections.
- `user_followees` — List the current Access Secret owner's public Zhihu followees.

Credential Access

High
Category
Privilege Escalation
Confidence
70% confidence
Finding

Code accesses credential files (SSH keys, AWS credentials, etc.). This could indicate credential theft attempts.

Content

Scanner excerpt · SKILL.md (reported line 52)May include surrounding context.

md
- `submit_pdf_parse` — Download a PDF from an HTTP URL, upload it to Zhihu, and submit an asynchronous parse task. [write]
- `submit_ppt_generation` — Submit a Zhihu answer or article URL for asynchronous PPTX generation. [write]
- `user_collections` — List the current Access Secret owner's recently favorited public content.
- `user_contents` — List the current Access Secret owner's public Zhihu creations.
- `user_favlists` — List the current Access Secret owner's public Zhihu collections.
- `user_followees` — List the current Access Secret owner's public Zhihu followees.
- `zhida` — Create a non-streaming Zhihu Zhida chat completion. [write]

Credential Access

High
Category
Privilege Escalation
Confidence
70% confidence
Finding

Code accesses credential files (SSH keys, AWS credentials, etc.). This could indicate credential theft attempts.

Content

Scanner excerpt · SKILL.md (reported line 53)May include surrounding context.

md
- `submit_ppt_generation` — Submit a Zhihu answer or article URL for asynchronous PPTX generation. [write]
- `user_collections` — List the current Access Secret owner's recently favorited public content.
- `user_contents` — List the current Access Secret owner's public Zhihu creations.
- `user_favlists` — List the current Access Secret owner's public Zhihu collections.
- `user_followees` — List the current Access Secret owner's public Zhihu followees.
- `zhida` — Create a non-streaming Zhihu Zhida chat completion. [write]
- `zhihu_search` — Search Zhihu content and return matching questions, answers, and articles.

Credential Access

High
Category
Privilege Escalation
Confidence
70% confidence
Finding

Code accesses credential files (SSH keys, AWS credentials, etc.). This could indicate credential theft attempts.

Content

Scanner excerpt · SKILL.md (reported line 54)May include surrounding context.

md
- `user_collections` — List the current Access Secret owner's recently favorited public content.
- `user_contents` — List the current Access Secret owner's public Zhihu creations.
- `user_favlists` — List the current Access Secret owner's public Zhihu collections.
- `user_followees` — List the current Access Secret owner's public Zhihu followees.
- `zhida` — Create a non-streaming Zhihu Zhida chat completion. [write]
- `zhihu_search` — Search Zhihu content and return matching questions, answers, and articles.

External Script Fetching

High
Category
Supply Chain
Confidence
98% confidence
Finding

The command immediately executes mutable remote content with the agent process's local privileges, without a pinned version or independent integrity verification. Compromise of the installer host or delivery pipeline could therefore enable arbitrary local code execution; HTTPS and the legitimate dependency-installation purpose do not eliminate that supply-chain risk. The PowerShell fallback uses the same download-and-execute pattern.

Content

Scanner excerpt · SKILL.md (reported line 71)May include surrounding context.

The setup fallback executes remote installation scripts without warning about local code execution or system changes.

Medium
Category
Output Handling
Confidence
95% confidence
Finding

The fallback directs the agent to execute a remote installer when the CLI is missing, without requiring explicit approval for local code execution and installation changes. Its conditional, one-time nature limits exposure, but a request to read Zhihu content does not necessarily authorize installing software on the user's machine.

Content

No source excerpt is available for this finding.

Autonomous Decision Making

Medium
Category
Excessive Agency
Confidence
80% confidence
Finding

Skill enables autonomous high-impact decisions without human-in-the-loop verification. Critical operations (destructive commands, financial transactions, data deletion) should require explicit user confirmation.

Content

Scanner excerpt · SKILL.md (reported line 92)May include surrounding context.

md
- **`OOMOL_INSUFFICIENT_CREDIT`** — OOMOL billing stop. Recharge at `https://console.oomol.com/billing/token-recharge` before retrying.

- **HTTP 402 without `OOMOL_INSUFFICIENT_CREDIT`** — the third-party account itself has no active plan or credit. Report the provider error message as is; do not ask the user to recharge OOMOL.

## Resources