registry / Credential exfiltration / @nalvietnam/avatar-cli / 3.37.0

@nalvietnam/avatar-cli@3.37.0

AI harness CLI for NAL Vietnam engineering

AI Security Review

scanned 9d ago · by lpm-firewall-ai

Source inspection confirms a user-triggered credential transfer to a configurable, unrestricted telemetry URL, so warn about conditional token exposure. The install hook only invokes the welcome screen, and the inspected source does not establish a malicious credential recipient.

Static reason

One or more suspicious static signals were detected.; previous stored version diff introduced dangerous source

Trigger

A logged-in user runs `avatar doctor` without `--no-probe`.

Impact

The token is disclosed to the configured recipient; with the default setting, that recipient is the NAL telemetry endpoint.

Mechanism

The probe reads the saved ID token and makes an authenticated POST to the configured telemetry URL without validating the destination.

AI rationale

Evidence

dist/index.js

Network endpoints1

telemetry.nal.vn/api/telemetry

Decision evidence

public snapshot

AI called this Suspicious at 83.0% confidence as Dangerous Capability with medium false-positive risk.

Evidence for warning

The npm postinstall hook invokes the welcome-screen script, which only calls a welcome printer.
Running `avatar doctor` triggers the telemetry probe by default; `--no-probe` skips it.
The probe reads the saved Avatar ID token through the telemetry helper.
The probe uses `AVATAR_TELEMETRY_URL` when set and otherwise targets `telemetry.nal.vn`.
It sends the token as a bearer credential in a POST request.

Evidence against

The credential transfer requires the user to run `avatar doctor`; the postinstall hook does not perform it.
The default destination is the package’s NAL telemetry service, and the source does not establish malicious use of the token.

Behavioral surface

Source

ChildProcessEnvironmentVarsFilesystemNetworkShell

Supply chain

HighEntropyStringsMinifiedPossibleObfuscationUrlStrings

Manifest

Source & flagged code

9 flagged

package.jsonView file

Lines 21-61json

21 "README.md"

22 ],

23 "engines": {

24 "node": ">=18.17.0"

25 },

26 "scripts": {

27 "build": "tsup && tsc -p tsconfig.core-dts.json",

28 "dev": "tsup --watch",

29 "test": "AUTOPILOT_PACK_FIXTURES_DIR=\"${AUTOPILOT_PACK_FIXTURES_DIR:-$PWD/../team-ai-pack/tests/fixtures}\" vitest run --passWithNoTests --exclude 'test/integration/**' --testTimeout=15000",

30 "test:watch": "vitest --exclude 'test/integration/**'",

31 "test:e2e": "npm run build && vitest run --passWithNoTests test/integration --testTimeout=60000",

32 "test:all": "npm run test && npm run test:e2e",

33 "lint": "biome check src test scripts",

34 "format": "biome format --write src test scripts",

35 "typecheck": "tsc --noEmit",

36 "check:release-docs": "node scripts/check-unreleased-version-notice-removed.mjs",

37 "schemas:generate": "tsx scripts/autopilot-schemas/generate-json-schemas.ts",

38 "hooks:install": "git config core.hooksPath githooks",

39 "prepare": "git config core.hooksPath githooks || true",

40 "prepublishOnly": "npm run check:release-docs && npm run lint && npm run typecheck && npm run build && npm run test:all",

41 "postinstall": "node ./bin/postinstall.js"

High

Install Time Lifecycle Scripts

Package defines install-time lifecycle scripts.

package.jsonView on unpkg · L41

Medium

Ambiguous Install Lifecycle Script

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

package.jsonView on unpkg · L41

42 },

43 "dependencies": {

44 "@inquirer/prompts": "^8.5.2",

45 "@napi-rs/keyring": "^1.1.0",

46 "boxen": "^8.0.0",

47 "chalk": "^5.3.0",

48 "cli-highlight": "^2.1.11",

49 "cli-table3": "^0.6.3",

50 "clipboardy": "^5.3.1",

51 "commander": "^15.0.0",

52 "diff": "^9.0.0",

53 "fast-glob": "^3.3.2",

54 "open": "^11.0.0",

55 "ora": "^9.4.0",

56 "simple-git": "^3.22.0",

57 "zod": "4.4.3"

58 },

59 "devDependencies": {

60 "@biomejs/biome": "2.5.0",

61 "@types/diff": "^7.0.2",

dist/index.jsView file

•matchType = previous_version_dangerous_delta matchedPackage = @nalvietnam/avatar-cli@3.36.1 matchedIdentity = npm:QG5hbHZpZXRuYW0vYXZhdGFyLWNsaQ:3.36.1 similarity = 0.750 summary = stored previous version shares package body but lacks this dangerous source file

Critical

Previous Version Dangerous Delta

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

dist/index.jsView on unpkg

10`),plain:e=>ns(`${e} L11: `)}});var xr={};qe(xr,{atomicSwapDir:()=>os,computeFileSha256:()=>is,copyDirRecursive:()=>rs,downloadFile:()=>bm,ensureDir:()=>S,extractTarballToDir:()=>Sm,pathExists:()=>k,readJso... L12: `,n)}async function rs(e,t,n=[]){await S(t);let r=await we.readdir(e,{withFileTypes:!0});for(let o of r){if(n.includes(o.name))continue;let i=lc(e,o.name),s=lc(t,o.name);if(o.isDir...

High

Child Process

Package source references child process execution.

dist/index.jsView on unpkg · L10

355`),t&&process.stdout.write(` D\u1EF1 ki\u1EBFn: ${w.cyan(t)} L356: `),process.exit(0)}}function Yj(e){e.command("mcp-run <tool-id>",{hidden:!0}).description("[internal] Spawn MCP v\u1EDBi secrets injected (M09)").action(wr("mcp-run","Milestone 09"... L357: `),0;t.spawnDetached(n.command,n.args)}catch(n){if(e.verbose){let r=n instanceof Error?n.message:String(n);t.stderr(`avatar notify: l\u1ED7i \u2014 ${r}

High

Shell

Package source references shell execution.

dist/index.jsView on unpkg · L355

Source & flagged code

9 flagged · loading source

package.jsonView file

•scripts.postinstall = node ./bin/postinstall.js

High

Install Time Lifecycle Scripts

Package defines install-time lifecycle scripts.

package.jsonView on unpkg

•scripts.postinstall = node ./bin/postinstall.js

Medium

Ambiguous Install Lifecycle Script

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

package.jsonView on unpkg

dist/index.jsView file

Critical

Previous Version Dangerous Delta

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

Findings

1 Critical7 High4 Medium6 Low

CriticalPrevious Version Dangerous Deltadist/index.js

HighInstall Time Lifecycle Scriptspackage.json

HighChild Processdist/index.js

HighShelldist/index.js

HighSame File Env Network Executiondist/index.js

HighCredential Redirect Persistencedist/index.js

HighCommand Output Exfiltrationdist/index.js

HighTrigger Reachable Command Output Exfiltrationdist/index.js

MediumAmbiguous Install Lifecycle Scriptpackage.json

MediumNetwork

MediumEnvironment Vars

MediumStructural Risk Force Deep Review

LowNon Install Lifecycle Scripts

Affected versions and remediation

This report applies to @nalvietnam/avatar-cli@3.37.0.

See all versions of @nalvietnam/avatar-cli for other recorded verdicts.

Review the evidence and your use of @nalvietnam/avatar-cli@3.37.0 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: 2026-10-14 14:42:26.634Z (UTC).

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