registry / @cotal-ai/cli / 0.131.4
@cotal-ai/cli@0.131.4
Cotal mesh CLI: up, join, watch, console, spawn, mint, channels, history, ext.
AI Security Review
scanned 5d ago · by lpm-firewall-aiThe manifest has no install-time hook, and the flagged writes and package installation are reachable through setup behavior. Runtime telemetry is disclosed, limited to usage reporting, and has an off setting; the reviewed source does not show an attack chain.
Static reason
One or more suspicious static signals were detected.; source matched previously finalized malicious package; routed for review
Trigger
Skill writes and the optional global install occur during `cotal setup`; telemetry is armed when a CLI command is dispatched.
Impact
No malicious impact identified; setup writes are limited to the tool’s skills and telemetry reports disclosed usage data.
Mechanism
Setup reconciles Cotal-authored skill files and may offer a global install when invoked via npx. Disclosed usage telemetry is sent to Cotal and can be disabled.
AI rationale
The manifest has no install-time hook, and the flagged writes and package installation are reachable through setup behavior. Runtime telemetry is disclosed, limited to usage reporting, and has an off setting; the reviewed source does not show an attack chain.
Evidence
~/.agents/skills/<name>/SKILL.md~/.cotal/agent-skills.json
Network endpoints1
cotal.ai/v1/telemetry
Decision evidence
public snapshotAI called this Clean at 90.0% confidence as Benign with low false-positive risk.
Evidence for AI clean decision
- package.json defines the module entry points and has no install or lifecycle hook.
- Skill reconciliation is part of `cotal setup`; it installs the package’s authored skills when they are missing or stale.
- Telemetry is disclosed as anonymous usage data, sent to Cotal, and can be turned off.
Evidence against
- `cotal setup` can write skills for other agent tools under `~/.agents/skills` and records ownership under `~/.cotal`.
- When run through npx without a global CLI, setup may offer to install the same CLI globally; noninteractive setup takes the default and installs it.
- Telemetry is armed for CLI commands, but the source describes the data collected and provides an off setting.
Behavioral surface
ChildProcessCryptoDynamicRequireEnvironmentVarsFilesystemNetworkShell
HighEntropyStringsUrlStrings
Source & flagged code
18 flaggeddist/seed/reconcile.jsView file
1import { existsSync, renameSync } from "node:fs";
L2: import { spawnSync } from "node:child_process";
L3: import { randomBytes } from "node:crypto";
High
Child Process
Package source references child process execution.
dist/seed/reconcile.jsView on unpkg · L1dist/lib/persona-files.jsView file
274process.on(signal, pass);
L275: const child = program ? spawn(program, [draft], { stdio: "inherit" }) : spawn(`${editor} ${quoted}`, { shell: true, stdio: "inherit" });
L276: return new Promise(resolve => {
High
dist/lib/nats-bin.jsView file
Findings
17 High4 Medium4 Low
HighChild Processdist/seed/reconcile.js
HighShelldist/lib/persona-files.js
HighTrigger Reachable External Ai Agent Control Surface Mutationdist/lib/agent-skills.js
HighRuntime Package Installdist/commands/setup.js
HighSemantic Analysis Limiteddist/commands/ext.js
HighKnown Malware Source Similaritydist/telemetry.js
HighKnown Malware Source Similaritydist/commands/up.js
HighKnown Malware Source Similaritydist/lib/self-exec.js
HighKnown Malware Source Similaritydist/lib/service-process.js
HighKnown Malware Source Similaritydist/commands/ext.js
HighKnown Malware Source Similaritydist/commands/setup-start.js
Affected versions and remediation
This report applies to @cotal-ai/cli@0.131.4.
See all versions of @cotal-ai/cli for other recorded verdicts.
- Review the evidence and your use of @cotal-ai/cli@0.131.4 before allowing it. Restrict the permissions described in this report.
- Choose an independently verified alternative or release. This report does not establish that other versions are safe.
Evidence last updated: .
Think this verdict is wrong? Dispute it on GitHub or read how reports are produced.