Scanning a codebase or file for security vulnerabilities
Running a security review or vulnerability check
Checking changed code before a commit or deployment — especially auth, API, database, dependency, or config changes
Checking for SQL injection, XSS, command injection, or other injection flaws
Finding exposed API keys, hardcoded secrets, or credentials in code
Auditing dependencies for known CVEs
Reviewing authentication, authorization, or access control logic
Detecting insecure cryptography or weak randomness
Performing a data flow analysis to trace user input to dangerous sinks
Any request phrasing like "is my code secure?", "scan this file", or "check my repo for vulnerabilities"
Running /security-review or /security-review <path>

How This Skill Works

Unlike traditional static analysis tools that match patterns, this skill:

Reads code like a security researcher — understanding context, intent, and data flow
Traces across files — following how user input moves through your application
Self-verifies findings — re-examines each result to filter false positives
Assigns severity ratings — CRITICAL / HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW / INFO
Proposes targeted patches — every finding includes a concrete fix
Requires human approval — nothing is auto-applied; you always review first

Execution Workflow

Follow these steps in order every time:

Step 1 — Scope Resolution

Determine what to scan:

If a path was provided (/security-review src/auth/), scan only that scope
If the request is about changes (a diff, staged files, a pre-commit or pre-deploy check), scope to the changed files (git diff, git diff --staged). Still read the surrounding code they call into or are called from — a change is often only exploitable in context. Run Step 2 only if a dependency manifest or lock file changed
If no path given, scan the entire project starting from the root
Identify the language(s) and framework(s) in use (check package.json, requirements.txt, go.mod, Cargo.toml, pom.xml, Gemfile, composer.json, etc.)
Read references/language-patterns.md to load language-specific vulnerability patterns

Step 2 — Dependency Audit

Before scanning source code, audit dependencies first (fast wins):

Node.js: Check package.json + package-lock.json for known vulnerable packages
Python: Check requirements.txt / pyproject.toml / Pipfile
Java: Check pom.xml / build.gradle
Ruby: Check Gemfile.lock
Rust: Check Cargo.toml
Go: Check go.sum
If available, run the ecosystem's audit tool (npm audit, pip-audit, or equivalent) — it reflects current advisories. These tools need network access to the package registry; if it's unavailable, fall back to the watchlist below and say the audit was offline
Flag packages with known CVEs, deprecated crypto libs, or suspiciously old pinned versions
Read references/vulnerable-packages.md for a curated watchlist

Step 3 — Secrets & Exposure Scan

Scan ALL files in scope (including config, env, CI/CD, Dockerfiles, IaC) for:

Hardcoded API keys, tokens, passwords, private keys
.env files accidentally committed
Secrets in comments or debug logs
Cloud credentials (AWS, GCP, Azure, Stripe, Twilio, etc.)
Database connection strings with credentials embedded
Read references/secret-patterns.md for regex patterns and entropy heuristics to apply

Step 4 — Vulnerability Deep Scan

This is the core scan. Reason about the code — don't just pattern-match. Read references/vuln-categories.md for full details on each category.

Injection Flaws

SQL Injection: raw queries with string interpolation, ORM misuse, second-order SQLi
XSS: unescaped output, dangerouslySetInnerHTML, innerHTML, template injection
Command Injection: exec/spawn/system with user input
LDAP, XPath, Header, Log injection

Authentication & Access Control

Missing authentication on sensitive endpoints
Broken object-level authorization (BOLA/IDOR)
JWT weaknesses (alg:none, weak secrets, no expiry validation)
Session fixation, missing CSRF protection
Session cookies missing Secure / HttpOnly / SameSite
Passwords stored in plaintext or with a fast hash; weak password policy; no MFA on privileged accounts
Privilege escalation paths
Mass assignment / parameter pollution

Data Handling

Sensitive data in logs, error messages, or API responses
Missing encryption at rest or in transit
Insecure deserialization
Path traversal / directory traversal
XXE (XML External Entity) processing
SSRF (Server-Side Request Forgery)

Cryptography

Use of MD5, SHA1, DES for security purposes
Hardcoded IVs or salts
Weak random number generation (Math.random() for tokens)
Missing TLS certificate validation

Security Misconfiguration & Logging

Permissive CORS, debug mode in production, missing security headers (framework specifics in references/language-patterns.md)
Security events (failed logins, access-control denials, privilege changes) not logged, leaving attacks undetectable

Business Logic

Race conditions (TOCTOU)
Integer overflow in financial calculations
Missing rate limiting on sensitive endpoints
Predictable resource identifiers

Step 5 — Cross-File Data Flow Analysis

After the per-file scan, perform a holistic review:

Trace user-controlled input from entry points (HTTP params, headers, body, file uploads) all the way to sinks (DB queries, exec calls, HTML output, file writes)
Identify vulnerabilities that only appear when looking at multiple files together
Check for insecure trust boundaries between services or modules

Step 6 — Self-Verification Pass

For EACH finding:

Re-read the relevant code with fresh eyes
Ask: "Is this actually exploitable, or is there sanitization I missed?"
Check if a framework or middleware already handles this upstream
Downgrade or discard findings that aren't genuine vulnerabilities
Assign final severity: CRITICAL / HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW / INFO

Step 7 — Generate Security Report

Output the full report in the format defined in references/report-format.md. For a snippet or diff scope, drop sections that don't apply (e.g. the dependency audit when no manifest changed) rather than filling them with zeros.

Step 8 — Propose Patches

For every CRITICAL and HIGH finding, generate a concrete patch:

Show the vulnerable code (before)
Show the fixed code (after)
Explain what changed and why
Preserve the original code style, variable names, and structure
Add a comment explaining the fix inline

Explicitly state: "Review each patch before applying. Nothing has been changed yet."

Severity Guide

Severity	Meaning	Example
🔴 CRITICAL	Immediate exploitation risk, data breach likely	SQLi, RCE, auth bypass
🟠 HIGH	Serious vulnerability, exploit path exists	XSS, IDOR, hardcoded secrets
🟡 MEDIUM	Exploitable with conditions or chaining	CSRF, open redirect, weak crypto
🔵 LOW	Best practice violation, low direct risk	Verbose errors, missing headers
⚪ INFO	Observation worth noting, not a vulnerability	Outdated dependency (no CVE)

Output Rules

Always produce a findings summary table first (counts by severity)
Never auto-apply any patch — present patches for human review only
Always include a confidence rating per finding (High / Medium / Low)
Group findings by category, not by file
Be specific — include file path, line number, and the exact vulnerable code snippet
Explain the risk in plain English — what could an attacker do with this?
If the codebase is clean, say so clearly: "No vulnerabilities found" with what was scanned

Reference Files

For detailed detection guidance, load the following reference files as needed:

references/vuln-categories.md — Deep reference for every vulnerability category with detection signals, safe patterns, and escalation checkers
- Search patterns: SQL injection, XSS, command injection, SSRF, BOLA, IDOR, JWT, CSRF, secrets, cryptography, race condition, path traversal
references/secret-patterns.md — Regex patterns, entropy-based detection, and CI/CD secret risks
- Search patterns: API key, token, private key, connection string, entropy, .env, GitHub Actions, Docker, Terraform
references/language-patterns.md — Framework-specific vulnerability patterns for JavaScript, Python, Java, PHP, Go, Ruby, and Rust
- Search patterns: Express, React, Next.js, Django, Flask, FastAPI, Spring Boot, PHP, Go, Rails, Rust
references/vulnerable-packages.md — Curated CVE watchlist for npm, pip, Maven, Rubygems, Cargo, and Go modules
- Search patterns: lodash, axios, jsonwebtoken, Pillow, log4j, nokogiri, CVE
references/report-format.md — Structured output template for security reports with finding cards, dependency audit, secrets scan, and patch proposal formatting
- Search patterns: report, format, template, finding, patch, summary, confidence

External references for each finding's Reference line: OWASP Top 10, CWE Top 25

security-audit

Security Review

When to Use This Skill