semgrep-audit

name	semgrep-audit
description	Runs Semgrep static analysis security audits with scoped rulesets and structured findings. Use for security scans, vulnerability audits, or when touching auth, secrets, SQL, or user input boundaries.

When to use

• security scans, vulnerability audits, or when touching auth, secrets, SQL, or user input boundaries

On-demand loading: Read this skill only when performing Semgrep security scans or validating security-sensitive changes. Do not load for unrelated work.

Related: Human-readable diff review → differential-review. Broader audit → security-review.

Semgrep Audit Skill

Use this skill to perform static analysis security auditing using Semgrep. Invoke when the user asks for a security scan, static analysis, vulnerability audit, or when touching security-sensitive code surfaces.

Trigger phrases

• "run semgrep"
• "static analysis"
• "security scan"
• "audit for vulnerabilities"
• "check for security issues"

Skill instructions

When this skill is invoked:

Step 1: Determine scope

Read the user's request to identify:

• Target paths (default: current workspace)
• Ruleset to use (default: auto)
• Language/framework context
• Severity threshold (default: WARNING and above)

Step 2: Check Semgrep availability

Verify Semgrep is available via one of:

1. The Semgrep MCP server (Cursor plugin — preferred; use semgrep_scan tool)
2. Local semgrep CLI via Bash
3. Docker: docker run --rm -v $(pwd):/src semgrep/semgrep semgrep scan --config auto /src

Step 3: Select rulesets

Choose rulesets based on context:

Context	Recommended rulesets
General security	p/owasp-top-ten, p/security-audit
Secrets detection	p/secrets
JavaScript/TypeScript	p/javascript, p/typescript, p/nodejs
Python	p/python, p/flask, p/django
Ruby/Rails	p/ruby, p/rails
Go	p/golang
Java	p/java, p/spring
PHP	p/php
Full audit	p/default

Step 4: Execute scan

Using the Semgrep MCP tool (preferred):

Use Semgrep MCP server → semgrep_scan with appropriate config

Using CLI fallback:

semgrep --config p/owasp-top-ten --config p/secrets --json --output semgrep-results.json .

Step 5: Analyze results

Delegate finding analysis to the verification-specialist subagent, or process inline:

For each finding:

1. Record: severity, rule ID, file path, line number, message
2. Read surrounding code context (±10 lines)
3. Assess: is this a true positive or false positive?
4. Note: is the finding in test code?
5. Identify: what is the remediation?

Step 6: Report findings

Structure the output as:

## Semgrep Audit Results

**Scan target:** <path>
**Rulesets:** <rulesets used>
**Total findings:** N (X critical, Y high, Z medium, W low)

---

### Critical / High Findings

#### [RULE-ID] Brief title
**File:** path/to/file.ts:LINE
**Severity:** HIGH
**Description:** What the vulnerability is and why it matters.
**Code:**
```<lang>
// relevant code snippet

Remediation: How to fix it.

---

Medium Findings

...

Low / Informational

...

False Positives Excluded

...

Summary

Key risks identified:

• ...

Recommended immediate actions:

1. ...

### Step 7: Prioritize

Highlight findings that:
- Are reachable from user-controlled input
- Affect authentication, authorization, or secrets
- Are exploitable without authentication
- Affect data at rest or in transit

### Notes

- The Trail of Bits version of this skill references companion docs (`methodology.md`, `adversarial.md`) from their internal repository. Those are not included here but the core scanning workflow is fully functional.
- For supply chain security, add `p/supply-chain` to the ruleset.
- Suppress known false positives with `# nosemgrep: rule-id` in source code.
- For CI integration: `semgrep --config auto --error` (exit 1 on findings).