Audit machines for CVE exposure without changing state

cyber-audit

When to Use

• Use when the user asks whether their machine or projects are affected by a CVE, breach, or package advisory.
• Use when a read-only local security exposure report is appropriate.

Hard rules

• Read-only. No installs, removes, upgrades, restarts, network calls, or file modifications outside ~/Documents/security-audits/.
• No sudo. Never.
• One report per invocation. Always end by writing the .md file (even if the verdict is "Not affected" - the audit trail matters).
• If a check requires a state-changing command, skip it and note "not checked (would require state change)" in the table. Do not run it.

Workflow

1. Identify scope. Extract from the advisory: package/binary name, affected versions, platform (macOS / Linux / Windows), attack vector (supply chain / RCE / local / network).
2. Run checks in parallel (Bash tool, multiple calls in one message). Pick relevant checks for the advisory type - don't run all of them.
3. Build the table as you go. Each row = one check + concrete result (version number, path, "None", "N/A").
4. Write the report to ~/Documents/security-audits/YYYY-MM-DD-<short-kebab-slug>.md. Use today's date from the environment header.
5. Tell the user the verdict in one line + path to the report.

Check menu (pick what's relevant)

### --- Node / npm ecosystem (supply-chain advisories) ---
which npm pnpm yarn; npm root -g; pnpm root -g 2>/dev/null
ls /opt/homebrew/lib/node_modules                                  # global npm
find ~ -maxdepth 8 -type d -name "<pkg>" 2>/dev/null \
  | grep -v -E "(Library/Caches|\.Trash)"                          # installed copies
find ~/Documents ~/Desktop ~/Downloads -maxdepth 8 -type f \
  \( -name "package.json" -o -name "package-lock.json" \
     -o -name "pnpm-lock.yaml" -o -name "yarn.lock" \) 2>/dev/null \
  | xargs grep -l "<pkg>" 2>/dev/null                              # direct + transitive

### --- Python ecosystem ---
which python3 pip pipx uv
pip list 2>/dev/null | grep -i "<pkg>"
find ~/Documents -maxdepth 6 -name "requirements*.txt" -o -name "pyproject.toml" \
  -o -name "poetry.lock" -o -name "uv.lock" 2>/dev/null | xargs grep -l "<pkg>" 2>/dev/null

### --- Homebrew / system binaries ---
brew list --versions <formula> 2>/dev/null
which <binary>; <binary> --version 2>/dev/null

### --- Running processes / listeners (for RCE / network CVEs) ---
pgrep -lf "<binary>"
lsof -iTCP -sTCP:LISTEN -P -n 2>/dev/null | grep "<port>"

### --- LaunchAgents / LaunchDaemons (persistence / autostart) ---
ls ~/Library/LaunchAgents /Library/LaunchAgents /Library/LaunchDaemons 2>/dev/null \
  | grep -i "<vendor>"

### --- Env vars that change exposure (e.g. OLLAMA_HOST, listening addr) ---
launchctl getenv <VAR>; grep -r "<VAR>" ~/.zshrc ~/.zprofile ~/.config 2>/dev/null

### --- VS Code / browser extensions (for IDE-targeted advisories) ---
ls ~/.vscode/extensions 2>/dev/null | grep -i "<ext>"

If the advisory mentions an ecosystem not above (Rust cargo, Go modules, Ruby gems, Docker images, etc.), apply the same pattern: global install path + manifest grep + running processes.

Report template

File: ~/Documents/security-audits/YYYY-MM-DD-<short-kebab-slug>.md

### <Subject> — Audit

**Date:** YYYY-MM-DD
**Host:** the user's Mac

### <CVEs | Advisory> in scope

- **<ID or source> "<Name>"** — <one-line description>. <Affected versions or scope>.

### Audit results

| Check | Result |
|---|---|
| <Check 1> | <Result> |
| <Check 2> | <Result> |

### Verdict

**<Not affected. | Affected. | Partially affected.>**

- <Rationale bullet 1>
- <Rationale bullet 2>

### Action taken

None — diagnostic only, no files modified, no <packages installed/removed | services started/stopped | firewall rules changed>.

### Follow-ups

- <Actionable item, or "None" if truly nothing>

Match the tone of the two existing reports in ~/Documents/security-audits/ - terse, factual, bulleted, no hedging.

Verdict wording

• Not affected. - package/binary absent, or installed but patched, or not running and not exposed.
• Affected. - vulnerable version present and reachable by the attack vector.
• Partially affected. - present but mitigated (e.g. binary installed but service not running, or listener bound to loopback only). Spell out the mitigation in the bullets.

When to break the read-only rule

Never on your own. If the verdict is "Affected", list the remediation command in Follow-ups and stop. The user runs it.

Reference

Two existing reports in ~/Documents/security-audits/ show the expected style:

• baseline-audit.md (long-form baseline audit - different format, do not mimic)
• YYYY-MM-DD-example-advisory.md and any newer YYYY-MM-DD-*.md files (this is the format to match)

Limitations

• Adapted from davidondrej/skills; verify local paths, tools, credentials, and agent features before acting.
• For commands, remote access, scheduling, browser automation, or file-changing workflows, get explicit user approval and confirm the target environment first.