๐ก๏ธ SkillGuard โ ClawHub Security Scanner
"Trust, but verify."
ClawHub has no moderation process. Any agent can publish any skill. SkillGuard provides the security layer that's missing โ scanning skills for dangerous patterns, vulnerable dependencies, and suspicious behaviors before they touch your system.
๐จ Why This Matters
Third-party skills can:
| Risk | Impact |
|---|---|
| Execute arbitrary code | Full system compromise |
| Access your filesystem | Data theft, ransomware |
| Read environment variables | API key theft ($$$) |
| Exfiltrate data via HTTP | Privacy breach |
| Install malicious dependencies | Supply chain attack |
| Persist backdoors | Long-term compromise |
| Escalate privileges | Root access |
One malicious skill = game over.
SkillGuard helps you catch threats before installation.
๐ฆ Installation
clawhub install clawscan
Or manually:
git clone https://github.com/G0HEAD/skillguard
cd skillguard
chmod +x scripts/skillguard.py
Requirements
- Python 3.8+
clawhubCLI (for remote scanning)
๐ Quick Start
# Scan a skill BEFORE installing
python3 scripts/skillguard.py scan some-random-skill
# Scan a local folder (your own skills or downloaded)
python3 scripts/skillguard.py scan-local ./path/to/skill
# Audit ALL your installed skills
python3 scripts/skillguard.py audit-installed
# Generate detailed security report
python3 scripts/skillguard.py report some-skill --format markdown
# Check dependencies for known vulnerabilities
python3 scripts/skillguard.py deps ./path/to/skill
๐ What SkillGuard Detects
๐ด CRITICAL โ Block Installation
These patterns indicate serious security risks:
| Category | Patterns | Risk |
|---|---|---|
| Code Execution | eval(), exec(), compile() |
Arbitrary code execution |
| Shell Injection | subprocess(shell=True), os.system(), os.popen() |
Command injection |
| Child Process | child_process.exec(), child_process.spawn() |
Shell access (Node.js) |
| Credential Theft | Access to ~/.ssh/, ~/.aws/, ~/.config/ |
Private key/credential theft |
| System Files | /etc/passwd, /etc/shadow |
System compromise |
| Recursive Delete | rm -rf, shutil.rmtree('/') |
Data destruction |
| Privilege Escalation | sudo, setuid, chmod 777 |
Root access |
| Reverse Shell | Socket + subprocess patterns | Remote access |
| Crypto Mining | Mining pool URLs, stratum:// |
Resource theft |
๐ก WARNING โ Review Before Installing
These patterns may be legitimate but warrant inspection:
| Category | Patterns | Concern |
|---|---|---|
| Network Requests | requests.post(), fetch() POST |
Where is data going? |
| Environment Access | os.environ, process.env |
Which variables? |
| File Writes | open(..., 'w'), writeFile() |
What's being saved? |
| Base64 Encoding | base64.encode(), btoa() |
Obfuscated payloads? |
| External IPs | Hardcoded IP addresses | Exfiltration endpoints? |
| Bulk File Ops | shutil.copytree(), glob |
Mass data access? |
| Persistence | crontab, systemctl, .bashrc |
Auto-start on boot? |
| Package Install | pip install, npm install |
Supply chain risk |
๐ข INFO โ Noted But Normal
| Category | Patterns | Note |
|---|---|---|
| File Reads | open(..., 'r'), readFile() |
Expected for skills |
| JSON Parsing | json.load(), JSON.parse() |
Data handling |
| Logging | print(), console.log() |
Debugging |
| Standard Imports | import os, import sys |
Common libraries |
๐ Scan Output Example
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
โ ๐ก๏ธ SKILLGUARD SECURITY REPORT โ
โ โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโฃ
โ Skill: suspicious-helper v1.2.0 โ
โ Author: unknown-user โ
โ Files: 8 analyzed โ
โ Scan Time: 2024-02-03 05:30:00 UTC โ
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
๐ FILES SCANNED
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
โ SKILL.md (541 bytes)
โ scripts/main.py (2.3 KB)
โ scripts/utils.py (1.1 KB)
โ scripts/network.py (890 bytes)
โ config.json (234 bytes)
โ requirements.txt (89 bytes)
โ package.json (312 bytes)
โ install.sh (156 bytes)
๐ด CRITICAL ISSUES (3)
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
[CRIT-001] scripts/main.py:45
โ Pattern: eval() with external input
โ Risk: Arbitrary code execution
โ Code: result = eval(user_input)
โ
[CRIT-002] scripts/utils.py:23
โ Pattern: subprocess with shell=True
โ Risk: Command injection vulnerability
โ Code: subprocess.run(cmd, shell=True)
โ
[CRIT-003] install.sh:12
โ Pattern: Recursive delete with variable
โ Risk: Potential data destruction
โ Code: rm -rf $TARGET_DIR/*
๐ก WARNINGS (5)
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
[WARN-001] scripts/network.py:15 โ HTTP POST to external URL
[WARN-002] scripts/main.py:78 โ Reads OPENAI_API_KEY
[WARN-003] requirements.txt:3 โ Unpinned dependency: requests
[WARN-004] scripts/utils.py:45 โ Base64 encoding detected
[WARN-005] config.json โ Hardcoded IP: 192.168.1.100
๐ข INFO (2)
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
[INFO-001] scripts/main.py:10 โ Standard file read operations
[INFO-002] requirements.txt โ 3 dependencies declared
๐ฆ DEPENDENCY ANALYSIS
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
requirements.txt:
โ ๏ธ requests (unpinned - specify version!)
โ json (stdlib)
โ pathlib (stdlib)
package.json:
โ ๏ธ axios@0.21.0 (CVE-2021-3749 - upgrade to 0.21.2+)
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
VERDICT: ๐ซ DANGEROUS
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
โ DO NOT INSTALL THIS SKILL
3 critical security issues found:
โข Arbitrary code execution via eval()
โข Command injection via shell=True
โข Dangerous file deletion pattern
Manual code review required before any use.
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
๐ฏ Commands Reference
scan <skill-name>
Fetch and scan a skill from ClawHub before installing.
skillguard scan cool-automation-skill
skillguard scan cool-automation-skill --verbose
skillguard scan cool-automation-skill --json > report.json
scan-local <path>
Scan a local skill directory.
skillguard scan-local ./my-skill
skillguard scan-local ~/downloads/untrusted-skill --strict
audit-installed
Scan all skills in your workspace.
skillguard audit-installed
skillguard audit-installed --fix # Attempt to fix issues
deps <path>
Analyze dependencies for known vulnerabilities.
skillguard deps ./skill-folder
skillguard deps ./skill-folder --update-db # Refresh vuln database
report <skill> [--format]
Generate detailed security report.
skillguard report suspicious-skill --format markdown > report.md
skillguard report suspicious-skill --format json > report.json
skillguard report suspicious-skill --format html > report.html
allowlist <skill>
Mark a skill as manually reviewed and trusted.
skillguard allowlist my-trusted-skill
skillguard allowlist --list # Show all trusted skills
skillguard allowlist --remove old-skill
watch
Monitor for new skill versions and auto-scan updates.
skillguard watch --interval 3600 # Check every hour
โ๏ธ Configuration
Create ~/.skillguard/config.json:
{
"severity_threshold": "warning",
"auto_scan_on_install": true,
"block_critical": true,
"trusted_authors": [
"official",
"PaxSwarm",
"verified-publisher"
],
"allowed_domains": [
"api.openai.com",
"api.anthropic.com",
"api.github.com",
"clawhub.ai"
],
"ignored_patterns": [
"test_*.py",
"*_test.js",
"*.spec.ts"
],
"custom_patterns": [
{
"regex": "my-internal-api\\.com",
"severity": "info",
"description": "Internal API endpoint"
}
],
"vuln_db_path": "~/.skillguard/vulns.json",
"report_format": "markdown",
"color_output": true
}
๐ Security Levels
After scanning, skills are assigned a security level:
| Level | Badge | Meaning | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Verified | โ | Trusted author, no issues | Safe to install |
| Clean | ๐ข | No issues found | Likely safe |
| Review | ๐ก | Warnings only | Read before installing |
| Suspicious | ๐ | Multiple warnings | Careful review needed |
| Dangerous | ๐ด | Critical issues | Do not install |
| Malicious | โ | Known malware patterns | Block & report |
๐ Integration Workflows
Pre-Install Hook
# Add to your workflow
skillguard scan $SKILL && clawhub install $SKILL
CI/CD Pipeline
# GitHub Actions example
- name: Security Scan
run: |
pip install skillguard
skillguard scan-local ./my-skill --strict --exit-code
Automated Monitoring
# Cron job for daily audits
0 9 * * * /path/to/skillguard audit-installed --notify
๐ Vulnerability Database
SkillGuard maintains a local database of known vulnerabilities:
# Update vulnerability database
skillguard update-db
# Check database status
skillguard db-status
# Report a new vulnerability
skillguard report-vuln --skill bad-skill --details "Description..."
Sources:
- CVE Database (Python packages)
- npm Advisory Database
- GitHub Security Advisories
- Community reports
๐ซ Limitations
SkillGuard is a first line of defense, not a guarantee:
| Limitation | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Obfuscation | Determined attackers can hide malicious code |
| Dynamic code | Runtime-generated code is harder to analyze |
| False positives | Legitimate code may trigger warnings |
| Zero-days | New attack patterns won't be detected |
| Dependencies | Deep transitive dependency scanning is limited |
Defense in depth: Use SkillGuard alongside:
- Sandboxed execution environments
- Network monitoring
- Regular audits
- Principle of least privilege
๐ค Contributing
Found a dangerous pattern we missed? Help improve SkillGuard:
Add a Pattern
{
"id": "CRIT-XXX",
"regex": "dangerous_function\\(",
"severity": "critical",
"category": "code_execution",
"description": "Dangerous function call",
"cwe": "CWE-94",
"remediation": "Use safe_alternative() instead",
"file_types": [".py", ".js"]
}
Report False Positives
skillguard report-fp --pattern "WARN-005" --reason "Legitimate use case"
๐ Changelog
v2.0.0 (Current)
- Comprehensive pattern database (50+ patterns)
- Dependency vulnerability scanning
- Multiple output formats (JSON, Markdown, HTML)
- Configuration file support
- Trusted author system
- Watch mode for monitoring updates
- Improved reporting with CWE references
v1.0.0
- Initial release
- Basic pattern detection
- Local and remote scanning
- Audit installed skills
๐ License
MIT License โ Use freely, contribute back.
๐ก๏ธ Stay Safe
"In the agent ecosystem, trust is earned through transparency. Every skill you install is code you're choosing to run. Choose wisely. Verify always."
Built by PaxSwarm โ protecting the swarm, one skill at a time ๐ฆโโฌ
Links: