The most downloaded skill on OpenClaw's marketplace turned out to be malware — stealing SSH keys and opening reverse shells.
Security researchers discovered that the number-one most downloaded skill on ClawHub, OpenClaw's official skill marketplace, was trojanized malware. Disguised as a productivity tool, the skill silently exfiltrated SSH keys, crypto wallet files, and browser cookies, while opening a reverse shell to the attacker's server. Over 1,184 malicious skill packages were identified across the marketplace, many with names mimicking legitimate tools.
AFFECTED USERS: ~1,184
ESTIMATED COST: $500,000
The Actual Culprit
ClawHub had no automated malware scanning at launch. Skills were published without code review. The trust model assumed good faith from all contributors.
Any marketplace that allows code execution needs automated malware scanning from day one, not as a retrofit.
The most downloaded package being malware proves that download counts mean nothing for security.
When your agent runs with root privileges, a malicious skill doesn't just steal data — it owns the entire machine.
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