Skill Scanner

Scan OpenClaw skills for security issues before you install them. 341 malicious skills were found on ClawHub — don't be the next victim.

Why This Exists

The ClawHub marketplace had 22-26% of skills flagged as containing vulnerabilities. Common attacks include:

• Credential stealers disguised as benign plugins
• Typosquatting (fake names similar to popular skills)
• Data exfiltration via hidden HTTP requests
• Obfuscated code hiding malicious payloads
• Prompt injection via SKILL.md content

Commands

Scan a local skill directory

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/scanner.py scan --path ~/.openclaw/skills/some-skill/

Scan a SKILL.md file directly

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/scanner.py scan --file ./SKILL.md

Scan with verbose output

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/scanner.py scan --path ~/.openclaw/skills/some-skill/ --verbose

Scan all installed skills

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/scanner.py scan-all

Scan with binary checksum verification

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/scanner.py scan --path ~/.openclaw/skills/some-skill/ --checksum checksums.json

Generate checksums for binary assets

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/scanner.py checksum --path ~/.openclaw/skills/some-skill/ -o checksums.json

Verify checksums against a manifest

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/scanner.py checksum --path ~/.openclaw/skills/some-skill/ --verify checksums.json

Output as JSON

python3 {baseDir}/scripts/scanner.py scan --path ./skill-dir/ --json

What It Checks

SKILL.md Analysis

• Suspicious URLs (non-HTTPS, IP addresses, URL shorteners)
• Prompt injection patterns (hidden instructions, override attempts)
• Requests for credentials, API keys, or tokens
• Obfuscated or encoded content (base64, hex, unicode escapes)

Script Analysis

• Network calls (curl, wget, requests, urllib, fetch)
• File system writes outside expected paths
• Environment variable access (credential harvesting)
• Shell command execution (os.system, subprocess, exec)
• Obfuscated strings (base64 decode, eval, exec)
• Data exfiltration patterns (POSTing to external URLs)
• Cryptocurrency wallet patterns
• Known malicious domains
• Dynamic instruction fetching (remote .md/.yaml/.json downloads)
• Fetch-and-execute patterns (remote code execution)
• Telemetry leaks (printenv, logging env vars/configs/secrets to stdout)
• Binary/asset risks (prebuilt executables, compiled code, library injection)
• Shell=True in subprocess calls (RCE risk)
• Path traversal patterns (directory escape via ../ sequences)

Name Analysis

• Typosquatting detection (compares against known popular skills)
• Edit distance calculation to catch misspellings and character swaps

Binary/Asset Checksum Verification

• SHA-256 checksums for all binary files (.exe, .dll, .so, .wasm, .pyc, etc.)
• Generate checksum manifests for trusted skill versions
• Verify binaries against expected checksums on update
• Flags unverified binaries and checksum mismatches (tampering detection)

Metadata Analysis

• Excessive permission requirements
• Suspicious install scripts
• Env requirements that seem unnecessary

Risk Levels

• CRITICAL — Almost certainly malicious. Do NOT install.
• HIGH — Likely malicious or extremely risky. Manual review required.
• MEDIUM — Suspicious patterns found. Review before installing.
• LOW — Minor concerns. Probably safe but worth checking.
• CLEAN — No issues detected. Safe to install.

Tips

• Always scan before installing ANY third-party skill
• Even "CLEAN" results aren't a guarantee — this catches known patterns
• If a skill needs network access, verify the domains it contacts
• Cross-reference skill names with known typosquats
• When in doubt, read the source code yourself