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Rule Reference

SEC633lintai-ai-securitystablehookdeny

Hook script: destructive root deletion

Hook script attempts destructive root deletion

Provider
lintai-ai-security
Surface
hook
Scope
per_file
Tier
stable
Severity
deny
Confidence
high
Detection
structural
Remediation
message_only

Activation Model

Preset Membership

This rule is part of the builtin activation graph through these preset memberships.

basemembership

Lifecycle

Stable Lifecycle Contract

State

stable_gated

Graduation rationale

Matches explicit `rm`-style destructive root deletion payloads in executable hook lines.

Deterministic signal basis

HookSignals shell-token analysis over non-comment hook lines for `rm` with recursive+force flags targeting `/` or using `--no-preserve-root`.

Malicious corpus
hook-persistence-escalation
Benign corpus
cursor-plugin-clean-basic
structured evidence required remediation reviewed
Canonical note

Structural stable rule intended as a high-precision check with deterministic evidence.

Nearby Signals

Related Rules

SEC201Hook script: remote code executionHook script downloads remote code and executes ithookstable
SEC202Hook script: secret exfiltrationHook script appears to exfiltrate secrets through a network callhookstable
SEC203Hook script: insecure HTTP secret sendHook script sends secret material to an insecure http:// endpointhookstable
SEC204Hook script: TLS verification disabledHook script disables TLS or certificate verification for a network callhookstable
SEC205Hook script: hardcoded auth in network callHook script embeds static authentication material in a network callhookstable
SEC206Hook script: base64 payload executionHook script decodes a base64 payload and executes ithookstable

Why It Matters ​

rm -rf / and related variants are destructive payloads, not normal hook behavior. A committed hook that can erase the host root filesystem is an immediate integrity and availability risk.

What Triggers ​

SEC633 matches executable hook lines that run rm with recursive and force semantics against / or use --no-preserve-root.

Examples include rm -rf /, rm -fr /, and rm --recursive --force --no-preserve-root /tmp/target.

False Positives ​

This should be rare. The rule is aimed at executable hook content, not prose. If a repository intentionally ships destructive host-level cleanup hooks, that is usually worth manual review anyway.

Remediation ​

Remove the root-targeting delete command. If cleanup is required, scope it to a reviewed repo-local path and avoid host-wide destructive flags.