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Security audit

OpenClaw Safe Install

Security checks across malware telemetry and agentic risk

Overview

This is a defensive installer, but it can persistently add third-party skills and its approval boundaries need careful review.

Install only if you are comfortable letting this skill run local shell commands to fetch third-party repositories or npm packages and write reviewed content into your persistent OpenClaw skills folder. Use trusted sources, inspect the generated report, avoid source strings with shell-like punctuation, and do not use the manual bypass commands shown for dangerous skills unless you have independently reviewed the package in isolation.

SkillSpector

By NVIDIA
Vulnerability Patterns
  • Trigger AbuseOverly Broad Trigger, Shadow Command Trigger, Keyword Baiting Trigger
  • MCP Tool PoisoningHidden Instructions, Unicode Deception, Parameter Description Injection
  • Prompt InjectionInstruction Override, Hidden Instructions, Exfiltration Commands
  • Data ExfiltrationExternal Transmission, Env Variable Harvesting, File System Enumeration
  • Privilege EscalationExcessive Permissions, Sudo/Root Execution, Credential Access
Findings (9)

Intent-Code Divergence

Medium
Confidence
97% confidence
Finding
The skill claims dangerous skills will not be installed, but then provides explicit manual install commands for rejected skills. This undermines the safety boundary by facilitating bypass of the review outcome and could normalize unsafe installation of malicious skills.

Intent-Code Divergence

Medium
Confidence
96% confidence
Finding
The skill says dangerous skills are 'directly refused' but then provides copy-pastable manual installation instructions for the same rejected artifact. This undermines the safety control by facilitating bypass of the review outcome and could lead users to install a known-dangerous skill anyway.

Missing User Warnings

Medium
Confidence
85% confidence
Finding
The README states that the skill will auto-install reviewed content into ~/.openclaw/skills/ after its own checks, but it does not clearly warn that this modifies the user's local environment or emphasize the need for explicit confirmation before writing files. In a security-sensitive installer skill, normalizing automatic writes based on the skill's own judgment increases the risk of unintended persistence or trust in an imperfect review process.

Vague Triggers

Medium
Confidence
87% confidence
Finding
The README advertises broad trigger phrases like "帮我装", "install skill", and "add skill" without clearly constraining that they apply only to third-party skill installation requests. In an agent setting, overly generic invocation phrases can cause accidental activation in unrelated conversations, leading the agent to fetch and potentially install untrusted content when the user did not intend to initiate this risky workflow.

Missing User Warnings

Medium
Confidence
91% confidence
Finding
The workflow states that if checks pass, the skill will automatically install into ~/.openclaw/skills/ after generating a report, but the README does not present an upfront warning that local files will be modified. Automatic writes to a persistent user directory increase the risk of unintended system changes, especially when combined with installation from third-party sources and broad activation phrases.

Vague Triggers

Medium
Confidence
88% confidence
Finding
The description includes broad trigger phrases such as generic install/help wording, which can cause the skill to activate in contexts the user did not intend. Over-broad invocation increases the chance that this skill handles untrusted sources or interrupts unrelated workflows involving installation language.

Vague Triggers

Medium
Confidence
93% confidence
Finding
The trigger conditions use ambiguous wording like 'something like,' which leaves invocation boundaries underspecified. Ambiguous routing can cause accidental execution of this skill on benign messages, increasing exposure to risky download, clone, and file-handling actions.

Vague Triggers

Medium
Confidence
88% confidence
Finding
The metadata trigger text includes broad everyday phrases like 'install skill', '帮我装', and 'add skill', which can cause the skill to activate in unintended contexts. Over-broad activation increases the chance the agent enters an install workflow when the user meant something else, potentially leading to unsafe tool use or confusing security decisions.

Vague Triggers

Medium
Confidence
90% confidence
Finding
The activation conditions are open-ended examples rather than strict matching criteria, so benign conversation could match accidentally. Because this skill performs network downloads and filesystem operations, unintended invocation materially raises risk.

VirusTotal

63/63 vendors flagged this skill as clean.

View on VirusTotal

Static analysis

Detected: suspicious.prompt_injection_instructions

Prompt-injection style instruction pattern detected.

Warn
Code
suspicious.prompt_injection_instructions
Location
SKILL.en.md:240

Prompt-injection style instruction pattern detected.

Warn
Code
suspicious.prompt_injection_instructions
Location
SKILL.md:240