registry / AI-agent control-surface risk / @chemx/starter-kit / 26.9.16-1408

@chemx/starter-kit@26.9.16-1408

Chemical X Protocol: Private drop-in architecture starter kit and capsule generator

AI Security Review

scanned 11d ago · by lpm-firewall-ai

Inspected source confirms an unconsented postinstall mutation of project-level AI-agent control configuration. The behavior meets the policy for blocking, regardless of the package's first-party MCP purpose.

Static reason

High-risk behavior combination matched malicious policy.; previous stored version diff introduced dangerous source

Trigger

Installing the package through npm runs its postinstall hook.

Impact

The consumer's supported AI tools gain a configured server entry that can launch chemx mcp.

Mechanism

The hook selects the consumer project directory and calls an installer that writes the package's MCP server definition into .cursor/mcp.json and .vscode/mcp.json.

Policy narrative

During package installation, the postinstall hook targets the consumer project and automatically writes MCP server entries to Cursor and VS Code configuration. Those entries invoke the package's MCP command, creating agent integrations without an install-time consent prompt.

AI rationale

Evidence

package.jsoncli/postinstall.jscli/mcp/installer.js.cursor/mcp.json.vscode/mcp.json

Decision evidence

public snapshot

AI identified this as a dangerous AI-agent capability at 98.0% confidence with low false-positive risk.

Evidence for policy risk

The package manifest runs cli/postinstall.js automatically during installation.
The postinstall hook targets the installing project and calls installAllMcpConfigs without a consent check.
That installer writes MCP server configuration into project-level Cursor and VS Code control files; the registered server can launch through npx chemx mcp.
The package also exposes an interactive installer for adding an agent search directive to AGENTS.md; that separate behavior is user-selected.

Evidence against

Behavioral surface

Source

ChildProcessEnvironmentVarsFilesystemNetworkShell

Supply chain

HighEntropyStringsUrlStrings

ManifestNo manifest risk signals triggered.

scanned 92 file(s), 601 KB of source, external domains: api.github.com, chemicalx.xophz.com, github.com, img.shields.io, mycompassconsulting.com, www.w3.org

Source & flagged code

9 flagged

package.jsonView file

Lines 34-73json

34 ".": "./cli/index.js",

35 "./audit": "./cli/audit.js",

36 "./build": "./cli/build.js",

37 "./search": "./cli/search.js",

38 "./mcp": "./cli/mcp/index.js",

39 "./reader": "./cli/reader.js",

40 "./patcher": "./cli/patcher.js"

41 },

42 "scripts": {

43 "publish:both": "node scripts/publish-both.mjs",

44 "test": "node --test cli/audit/*.spec.js cli/mcp/*.spec.js cli/*.spec.js",

45 "typecheck": "tsc --noEmit",

46 "create-capsule": "node cli/index.js",

47 "audit": "node cli/index.js audit",

48 "ci:audit": "node cli/index.js audit --ci --dir=cli",

49 "chemx": "node cli/index.js",

50 "q": "node cli/index.js q",

51 "search": "node cli/index.js search",

52 "mcp": "node cli/index.js mcp",

53 "install-mcp": "node cli/index.js install-mcp",

54 "postinstall": "node cli/postinstall.js",

High

Install Time Lifecycle Scripts

Package defines install-time lifecycle scripts.

package.jsonView on unpkg · L54

Medium

Ambiguous Install Lifecycle Script

Install-time lifecycle script is not statically allowlisted and needs review.

package.jsonView on unpkg · L54

55 "read": "node cli/index.js read",

56 "patch": "node cli/index.js patch"

57 },

58 "dependencies": {

59 "@babel/parser": "^7.29.8",

60 "@babel/traverse": "^7.29.8",

61 "@babel/types": "^7.29.8",

62 "react": "^18.3.1",

63 "react-dom": "^18.3.1"

64 },

65 "devDependencies": {

66 "@types/babel__traverse": "^7.28.0",

67 "@types/node": "^22.20.2",

68 "@types/react": "^18.3.31",

69 "@types/react-dom": "^18.3.7",

70 "typescript": "^5.9.3"

71 }

72}

cli/audit-preflight-git.jsView file

Lines 1-21javascript

1import fs from 'node:fs';

2import { spawnSync } from 'node:child_process';

High

Child Process

Package source references child process execution.

cli/audit-preflight-git.jsView on unpkg · L1

4const SOURCE_FILE_PATTERN = /\.

cli/terminal.jsView file

Lines 1-30javascript

1import readline from "node:readline";

2import { spawnSync } from "node:child_process";

3import { formatChemicalXGradient, ANSI } from "./theme.js";

5export const openBrowser

cli/license.jsView file

Lines 1-23javascript

1import fs from 'node:fs';

2import path from 'node:path';

3import os from 'node:os';

4import { spawnSync } from 'node:child_process';

cli/mcp/installer.jsView file

Lines 1-21javascript

1import fs from 'node:fs';

2import path from 'node:path';

3import os from 'node:os';

5const SERVER_KEY =

cli/scaffold.jsView file

•Manifest-trigger-reachable source links an external AI-agent control path to a behavior-bearing write operation. import fs from 'node:fs'; import path from 'node:path'; import { hasgum, guminput, promptquestion, renderbanner } from './terminal.js'; import { obtainlicensekey, fetchstarterkitfiles, loadlocalblueprintfiles } from './license.js'; export const runscaffold = async (projectname, rawargs = [], onrunaudit = null) => { renderbanner('chemical x: molecular architecture scaffolder (npm create chemx)'); const licensekey = await obtainlicensekey(rawargs, onrunaudit); let iscommunity = false; let files = {}; if (!licensekey) { process.stdout.write( '\n\x1b[38;2;98;201;255m⚡ chemical x: community edition (free)\x1b[0m\n' + 'the community version is free because

High

Trigger Reachable External Ai Agent Control Surface Mutation

Manifest-trigger-reachable source writes behavior-bearing configuration into a user or project AI-agent control surface.

cli/scaffold.jsView on unpkg

scripts/pre-commit.shView file

•matchType = previous_version_dangerous_delta matchedPackage = @chemx/starter-kit@26.9.14-1358 matchedIdentity = npm:QGNoZW14L3N0YXJ0ZXIta2l0:26.9.14-1358 similarity = 0.786 summary = stored previous version shares package body but lacks this dangerous source file

High

Previous Version Dangerous Delta

This package version adds a dangerous source file absent from the previous stored version; route for source-aware review.

scripts/pre-commit.shView on unpkg

•path = scripts/pre-commit.sh kind = build_helper sizeBytes = 4608 magicHex = [redacted]

Medium

Ships Build Helper

Package ships non-JavaScript build or shell helper files.

scripts/pre-commit.shView on unpkg

Source & flagged code

9 flagged · loading source

package.jsonView file

•scripts.postinstall = node cli/postinstall.js

High

Install Time Lifecycle Scripts

Package defines install-time lifecycle scripts.

package.jsonView on unpkg

•scripts.postinstall = node cli/postinstall.js

Medium

Ambiguous Install Lifecycle Script

Install-time lifecycle script is not statically allowlisted and needs review.

package.jsonView on unpkg

cli/audit-preflight-git.jsView file

1import fs from 'node:fs'; L2: import { spawnSync } from 'node:child_process'; L3:

High

Child Process

Package source references child process execution.

cli/audit-preflight-git.jsView on unpkg · L1

Findings

1 Critical6 High5 Medium4 Low

CriticalAi Agent Control Hijackcli/mcp/installer.js

HighInstall Time Lifecycle Scriptspackage.json

HighChild Processcli/audit-preflight-git.js

HighShellcli/terminal.js

HighSame File Env Network Executioncli/license.js

HighTrigger Reachable External Ai Agent Control Surface Mutationcli/scaffold.js

HighPrevious Version Dangerous Deltascripts/pre-commit.sh

MediumAmbiguous Install Lifecycle Scriptpackage.json

MediumNetwork

MediumEnvironment Vars

MediumShips Build Helperscripts/pre-commit.sh

MediumStructural Risk Force Deep Review

Low

Affected versions and remediation

This report applies to @chemx/starter-kit@26.9.16-1408.

See all versions of @chemx/starter-kit for other recorded verdicts.

Avoid installing @chemx/starter-kit@26.9.16-1408. Remove it from direct dependencies and check your lockfile for transitive copies.
Choose an independently verified alternative or release. This report does not establish that other versions are safe.
If this version ran, investigate the affected machine and build environment. Rotate credentials it could access and rebuild from a trusted environment.

Evidence last updated: 2026-10-12 06:19:35.846Z (UTC).

Think this verdict is wrong? Dispute it on GitHub or read how reports are produced.

AI Security Review

Decision evidence

Source & flagged code

Source & flagged code

Findings

Affected versions and remediation

Related packages

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Behavioral surface

Related packages

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Source & flagged code