GitHub - clidey/deptrust: deptrust is a CLI that checks package versions for known vulnerabilities across npm, PyPI, crates.io, Go modules, RubyGems, NuGet, Maven, Packagist, pub.dev, CocoaPods, Hex.pm, Hackage, GitHub Actions, and more. It runs locally as a CLI and as an MCP server.
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deptrust is a CLI that checks package versions for known vulnerabilities across npm, PyPI, crates.io, Go modules, RubyGems, NuGet, Maven, Packagist, pub.dev, CocoaPods, Hex.pm, Hackage, GitHub Actions, and more. It runs locally as a CLI and as an MCP server. It calls public package registry and OSV APIs directly; there is no hosted deptrust service to trust or configure. This tool was born out of the frustration that is AI agents constantly using old versions. Contents
Scope CLI Usage Install Agent Setup Manual MCP Setup MCP Tools Skill-Only Use Troubleshooting
Scope Supported ecosystems:
npm, including scoped packages like @clidey/ux PyPI Cargo / crates.io Go modules RubyGems NuGet Maven, using groupId:artifactId package names Packagist / Composer, using vendor/package package names pub.dev CocoaPods Hex.pm Hackage GitHub Actions, using owner/repo package names and tags, branch refs, or commit SHAs as versions
deptrust currently reports known vulnerabilities and gives a simple recommendation:
Highest known severity Recommendation
critical block
high block
medium / unknown review
low allow
none found allow
allow means no blocking known vulnerability was found in the public data sources.
It does not prove that a package is safe. deptrust also emits risk signals that are not CVEs. For example, a version published in the last 72 hours is marked for review so an agent does not blindly install a brand-new release. Advisory providers are queried in parallel:
OSV GitHub Advisory Database, including reviewed advisories and malware advisories
Provider coverage varies by ecosystem. If deptrust can resolve registry metadata but no configured vulnerability provider supports that ecosystem, it returns unknown instead of treating the package as safe. Provider coverage:
Ecosystem Registry metadata OSV GitHub Advisory DB
npm yes yes yes
PyPI yes yes yes
Cargo / crates.io yes yes yes
Go modules yes yes yes
RubyGems yes yes yes
NuGet yes yes yes
Maven yes yes yes
Packagist / Composer yes yes yes
pub.dev yes yes yes
CocoaPods yes no yes
Hex.pm yes yes yes
Hackage yes yes no
GitHub Actions yes yes yes
The JSON output includes advisory coverage fields:
checked_providers: vulnerability providers deptrust actually queried skipped_providers: configured providers skipped because the ecosystem is unsupported advisory_coverage: full, partial, none, or error advisory_coverage_reason: short explanation for the coverage value
CLI Usage Check an exact version: deptrust check npm lodash 4.17.20 Example normal response: npm lodash@4.17.20: 2 known vulnerabilities found recommendation: block risk_score: 80
Check the latest version: deptrust check pypi requests latest Return JSON: deptrust check --json cargo serde latest Check a Go module: deptrust check go golang.org/x/crypto latest Check RubyGems, NuGet, or Maven: deptrust check rubygems rails latest deptrust check nuget Newtonsoft.
Json latest deptrust check maven org.apache.logging.log4j:log4j-core latest Check Packagist, pub.dev, CocoaPods, Hex.pm, Hackage, or GitHub Actions: deptrust check packagist monolog/monolog latest deptrust check pub http latest deptrust check cocoapods AFNetworking latest deptrust check hex plug latest deptrust check hackage aeson latest deptrust check github-actions actions/checkout v7.0.0 deptrust check github-actions actions/checkout main For GitHub Actions, full commit SHAs are treated as pinned. Full semver tags such as v4.2.2 are accepted without an extra pinning signal. Major-only tags such as v4 and branch refs such as main are valid refs, but deptrust adds a review signal because they can move. Example JSON response: { "ecosystem": "npm", "package": "lodash", "version": "4.17.20", "latest_version": "4.17.21", "known_vulnerabilities_found": true, "safe_to_use": false, "should_install": false, "risk_score": 80, "recommendation": "block", "classification": "vulnerable", "reason": "Found 2 known vulnerability records.", "next_action": "do_not_install; use suggest_safe_version or compare_versions to choose a safer version", "summary": "lodash 4.17.20 has 2 known vulnerabilities, including high severity. Block this exact version and prefer a fixed release.", "signals": [], "checked_providers": [ "OSV", "GitHub Advisory DB" ], "skipped_providers": [], "advisory_coverage": "full", "advisory_coverage_reason": "all configured vulnerability providers were checked", "vulnerabilities": [ { "id": "GHSA-35jh-r3h4-6jhm",
"aliases": [ "CVE-2021-23337" ], "cve_ids": [ "CVE-2021-23337" ], "ghsa_ids": [ "GHSA-35jh-r3h4-6jhm" ], "summary": "Command Injection in lodash", "severity": "high", "source": "OSV", "advisory_url": "https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-35jh-r3h4-6jhm", "affected_ranges": [ "SEMVER: introduced 0, fixed 4.17.21" ], "fixed_versions": [ "4.17.21" ], "references": [ { "type": "ADVISORY", "url": "https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-35jh-r3h4-6jhm" } ] } ], "provider_errors": [] } Suggest the latest version only when no known vulnerabilities are found: deptrust suggest npm lodash If the latest version is not allowed, suggest checks older known versions and returns the newest version with an allow recommendation. When advisories include fixed versions, suggest checks those provider-reported fixed versions first before walking back through the registry version list. Compare two versions: deptrust compare npm lodash 4.17.20 4.17.21 Example compare response: lodash 4.17.20 -> 4.17.21 improves risk: score 80 to 0. recommendation: allow next_action: upgrade_to_target
Show the installed version: deptrust version Install The easiest install path is npx or pnpx: npx @clidey/deptrust install pnpx @clidey/deptrust@latest install The default installer is guided. It installs the binary, asks which agent integrations to configure, prints the user-level destinations before changing anything, and asks for confirmation. Add --yes for non-interactive binary-only installs, or pass explicit integration flags.
To remove the user-level binary, skill, and MCP entries: npx @clidey/deptrust uninstall pnpx @clidey/deptrust@latest uninstall Homebrew users can install from the Clidey tap: brew install clidey/tap/deptrust Or tap first, then install and upgrade as usual: brew tap clidey/tap brew install deptrust brew upgrade deptrust Go users can install directly: go install github.com/clidey/deptrust/cmd/deptrust@latest Agent Setup To install deptrust and register everything the installer can configure without the guided prompts: npx @clidey/deptrust install --all pnpx @clidey/deptrust@latest install --all --all installs the binary, registers Codex MCP when the codex CLI is available, installs the Codex skill fallback, and registers Claude Code MCP when the claude CLI is available. Use narrower installs when preferred: npx @clidey/deptrust install --codex-mcp npx @clidey/deptrust install --claude-code-mcp npx @clidey/deptrust skills install pnpx @clidey/deptrust@latest install --codex-mcp pnpx @clidey/deptrust@latest install --claude-code-mcp pnpx @clidey/deptrust@latest skills install After MCP setup, agents will automatically check packages before recommending updates or changes. The MCP server sends instructions to vet all dependency versions — including answering questions like "what can I update" or "which dependencies are safe to upgrade" — before providing recommendations. If using deptrust in a non-MCP context, remind your agent: Before listing, comparing, or recommending specific package versions, check them with deptrust. This includes answering "what can I update" — do not provide version recommendations until after checking for known vulnerabilities.
Manual MCP Setup If your client supports stdio MCP servers, configure it to run: /absolute/path/to/deptrust mcp Many clients use this JSON shape: { "mcpServers": { "deptrust": { "command": "/absolute/path/to/deptrust", "args": ["mcp"] } } } For Codex, you can also add it with: codex mcp add deptrust --
/absolute/path/to/deptrust mcp For Claude Code: claude mcp add --transport stdio deptrust -- /absolute/path/to/deptrust mcp On initialize, the server returns MCP instructions telling the agent when to reach for these tools (before adding, bumping, or recommending a dependency, or when asked whether a version is safe to update). Clients that surface server instructions will apply this automatically, so the manual reminder above is optional rather than required. MCP Tools check_package Checks a package version and returns known vulnerabilities plus a recommendation. { "ecosystem": "npm", "package": "lodash", "version": "4.17.20" } version may be omitted or set to latest. If an exact version does not exist, deptrust returns an error and suggests the latest explicit version. MCP output is intentionally compact so agents can decide whether to install a dependency without pulling full advisory bodies into context. If the user asks to see full details, the agent can run the full_response_command. Example compact MCP structured output: { "ecosystem": "npm", "package": "vite", "version": "7.0.0", "latest_version": "8.0.16", "known_vulnerabilities_found": true, "safe_to_use": false, "should_install": false, "risk_score": 80, "classification": "vulnerable", "recommendation": "block", "reason": "Found 7 known vulnerability records.", "next_action": "do_not_install; use suggest_safe_version or compare_versions to choose a safer version", "summary": "vite 7.0.0 has 7 known vulnerabilities, including high severity. Block this exact version and prefer a fixed release.", "vulnerability_count": 7, "vulnerability_counts": { "critical": 0, "high": 2, "medium": 3, "low": 2, "unknown": 0 }, "highest_severity": "high", "checked_providers": [ "OSV", "GitHub Advisory DB" ], "skipped_providers": [],