Reddit Researcher

Scan Reddit for posts matching keywords and summarize findings. Uses Bing primary + Reddit JSON API fallback — robust against DuckDuckGo bot blocking. Use wh...

Security Scan

The skill generally does what its name says (search Reddit and summarize), but there are several mismatches between declared requirements and the actual scripts (undeclared dependencies, inconsistent docs about cache location and env vars) that merit caution before installing.

Purpose & Capability

The name/description match the code: scripts search the web/Reddit, fetch posts, and produce summaries. However, registry metadata lists no required env vars while SKILL.md requires REDDIT_KEYWORDS and optional REDDIT_SUBREDDITS/REDDIT_SEARCH_ENGINE. SKILL.md says cache is in ~/.openclaw/... but the scripts use a local ../cache directory. These inconsistencies mean the metadata and docs are not fully aligned with the actual capability.

Instruction Scope

Runtime instructions and scripts operate within the stated scope: they perform network searches (Bing/DuckDuckGo/Reddit), fetch Reddit JSON, extract titles/comments, and write local cache and export files. They do not attempt to read other user files or transmit data to unexpected third-party endpoints. Caveats: the scripts invoke additional system tools (python3, md5sum, stat -c, grep -P, cut, wc) that are not declared; some commands (stat -c, grep -P) are platform-specific and may fail on non-Linux hosts.

Install Mechanism

No install spec (instruction-only) and included scripts are simple shell/Python one-liners. Risk is low from an installer perspective, but the scripts will write cache and export files into directories relative to the skill and the user's filesystem.

Credentials

The skill does not request secrets or cloud credentials (no TOKENS/KEYS). However, SKILL.md requires REDDIT_KEYWORDS (required) and uses REDDIT_SUBREDDITS/REDDIT_SEARCH_ENGINE, yet the registry metadata did not list these env vars—an inconsistency. Also the scripts set custom User-Agent headers when querying external services (benign but notable).

Persistence & Privilege

The skill is not always-enabled and does not modify other skills or global agent configuration. It caches fetched pages to a local cache directory and writes export markdowns; that is standard and limited in scope.

What to consider before installing

What to consider before installing: - Functional fit: The scripts do match a 'Reddit researcher' purpose — they query search engines and Reddit, then summarize posts. - Mismatched metadata/docs: The registry lists no required env vars or binaries, but SKILL.md and the scripts expect REDDIT_KEYWORDS (required) and may use REDDIT_SUBREDDITS/REDDIT_SEARCH_ENGINE. The skill's documented cache path (~/.openclaw/...) does not match the actual ./cache directory used by the scripts. Ask the author to reconcile metadata and documentation before trusting automatic installs. - Undeclared dependencies: The scripts call python3, md5sum, stat (with -c), and rely on grep -P and other GNU-specific flags. Ensure these binaries exist on your system or run in a sandboxed environment. The registry only declared curl; that is insufficient. - Networking & scraping: The skill will make outbound requests to Bing, DuckDuckGo (html.duckduckgo.com), and reddit.com. If you or your org restricts outgoing traffic or forbids scraping, do not run it. Also be aware of Reddit's terms of service concerning automated scraping. - Files written: The skill caches responses and writes export markdown files. If you run this on sensitive hosts, confirm where files are written and review cache contents. - Practical steps: Review/patch the SKILL.md to declare REDDIT_KEYWORDS and required binaries, test the scripts locally in a disposable/sandbox environment, and ensure rate limits/robots policy are acceptable. If you need higher assurance, ask the publisher for an updated release that fixes metadata, documents dependencies (python3, coreutils), and clarifies cache paths. Given the inconsistencies (metadata vs. actual scripts and undeclared binaries) I recommend exercising caution (review and test manually) rather than installing blindly.

Search Reddit for posts and comments matching your keywords, extract insights and pain points.

Environment Variables

Variable	Required	Default	Description
REDDIT_SUBREDDITS	No	all	Comma-separated list of subreddits (e.g., technology,programming)
REDDIT_KEYWORDS	Yes	—	Comma-separated keywords to search for
REDDIT_SEARCH_ENGINE	No	bing	Search engine: bing, google, or reddit (direct JSON API)

Scripts

scan.sh — Search Reddit

Searches Reddit for posts matching keywords using DuckDuckGo.

./scripts/scan.sh <keywords>

Output: List of Reddit post titles with URLs.

summarize.sh — Extract Pain Points

Fetches Reddit posts and extracts common themes, complaints, and requests.

./scripts/summarize.sh <post_urls_file>

Output: Markdown summary with pain points, desires, and patterns.

export.sh — Export Findings

Exports all research findings to a markdown file with timestamp.

./scripts/export.sh <summary_file>

Output: reddit-research-YYYY-MM-DD.md in the output directory.

Usage Example

export REDDIT_KEYWORDS="AI coding,ChatGPT,developer tools"
export REDDIT_SUBREDDITS="programming,technology,artificial"

# Search for posts
./scripts/scan.sh "$REDDIT_KEYWORDS" > posts.txt

# Summarize findings
./scripts/summarize.sh posts.txt

# Export results
./scripts/export.sh summary.md

Notes

• Uses Bing as primary search engine, with Reddit JSON API and Google as fallbacks — designed to work even when DuckDuckGo blocks automated queries
• Set REDDIT_SEARCH_ENGINE=reddit for direct Reddit API access (no search engine needed)
• Respects rate limits; adds delays between requests
• Results cached in ~/.openclaw/workspace/skills/reddit-researcher/cache/
• Output format is Reddit markdown with proper link formatting