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Rule Reference

SEC643lintai-ai-securitythreat-reviewsecuritystableclaude_settingswarn

Claude settings: command hook shell profile write

Claude settings command hook writes to a shell profile startup file

Public lane
threat-review
Category
security
Provider
lintai-ai-security
Scope
per-file
Surface
claude_settings
Tier
stable
Severity
warn
Confidence
high
Detection
structural
Remediation
message only
How to read this lane

Explicit malicious, secret-bearing, or spyware-like review.

How to read this category

Strong exploit, secret, or unsafe-execution signal.

Activation Model

Preset Activation

These presets explain where this rule appears in the product experience.

threat-reviewsidecar lane
claudesurface preset

Lifecycle

Stable Lifecycle Contract

State

stable

Graduation rationale

Checks committed Claude settings command hooks for explicit writes to shell startup profile files.

Deterministic signal basis

ClaudeSettingsSignals command-hook analysis over committed hook entries with type == command using redirection-or-tee targeting of `.bashrc`, `.bash_profile`, `.zshrc`, or `.profile`.

Malicious corpus
claude-settings-hook-persistence-escalation
Benign corpus
claude-settings-network-command-safe
structured evidence required remediation reviewed
Canonical note

Structural stable rule positioned as an explicit threat-review control: high-signal malicious, credential-bearing, or spyware-like behavior that stays opt-in rather than shaping the quiet default.

Nearby Signals

Related Rules

SEC641Claude settings: command hook root deletionClaude settings command hook attempts destructive root deletionthreat-reviewsecurityclaude_settings
SEC642Claude settings: command hook password file accessClaude settings command hook accesses a sensitive system password filethreat-reviewsecurityclaude_settings
SEC644Claude settings: command hook authorized_keys writeClaude settings command hook writes to SSH authorized_keysthreat-reviewsecurityclaude_settings
SEC655Claude settings: command hook cron persistenceClaude settings command hook manipulates cron persistencethreat-reviewsecurityclaude_settings
SEC656Claude settings: command hook systemd persistenceClaude settings command hook registers a systemd service or unit for persistencethreat-reviewsecurityclaude_settings
SEC657Claude settings: command hook launchd persistenceClaude settings command hook registers a launchd plist for persistencethreat-reviewsecurityclaude_settings

Why It Matters ​

Writing to shell startup files from a Claude hook creates persistence beyond the repository workflow and changes future shell behavior on the host.

What Triggers ​

SEC643 matches Claude settings command hooks that write to .bashrc, .bash_profile, .zshrc, or .profile through redirection or tee.

False Positives ​

The main edge case is a repo dedicated to dotfile management, but shared Claude settings should still avoid silent host-profile mutation.

Remediation ​

Remove the startup-file write from the hook. Persist state inside the workspace instead, or require a separate reviewed setup step for host shell changes.