Protect your Mac
Under review
New in 1.2.0 Requires Cloak Watch 1.2.0 or later.
How Cloak Watch's Under review cards will warn about suspicious new package and extension releases before anyone confirms them, and how verdicts, disputes and withdrawals work.
Under review is an early warning about a new release of a package or extension that changed the way hijacked releases do, before a registry or a public database confirms anything. It comes from Subcloak’s release scanner, and Under review cards come with the Live Feed plan. When a release is confirmed, every Mac gets the alert, free plan included.
What the scanner looks for
Section titled “What the scanner looks for”Subcloak runs the release scanner on its own servers. When a popular package or an editor extension publishes a new version, the scanner compares it with the version before and looks for the kinds of change that 2025 and 2026 hijacks made:
- a new install script or startup hook, such as an npm
postinstall, a Python.pthfile, or an extension that now starts with the editor; - new code that runs automatically and starts programs, downloads and runs something, decodes hidden code, or touches crypto-wallet requests;
- obfuscated code, or long runs of invisible characters;
- a dependency that now comes straight from a Git repository or a URL;
- a new program file at the top of the package, or a sudden large jump in size;
- a version the source repository doesn’t know about.
The scanner never runs the code it reads. It downloads the published files and compares them. It covers the most-downloaded npm and PyPI packages and editor extensions on the VS Code Marketplace and Open VSX.
What you see
Section titled “What you see”You see a card only if that version is on your Mac: installed, in a lockfile, in a cache, or an extension you have.
An Under review card for a made-up package, from the app's test data.
| Card | When | Tier |
|---|---|---|
| Under review: unusual change in NAME VERSION | The scanner found changes like the ones above, and a person at Subcloak is checking them. The card says which version to stay on (“Don’t update to 5.6.1 yet. Stay on 5.6.0 until this review finishes.”), lists what changed as facts, and posts one ordinary notification. | Review |
| Reported to npm: NAME VERSION (or PyPI, crates.io, the VS Code Marketplace, Open VSX) | A person checked the changes and reported the version to the registry. The same card is updated; there’s no new notification. | Review |
| Removed by npm: NAME VERSION, or Confirmed: NAME VERSION is listed in a public advisory | The registry removed or quarantined the version, or a public database (OSV or GitHub’s advisories) listed it. You get a time-sensitive notification and the steps to remove it. If the feed already has an Act now card for the same install, you see that one instead. | Act now |
An Under review or Reported card is not a verdict about the package or its maintainers. Each card says so: the changes “don’t say who is at fault: publishing accounts are sometimes taken over”, and the card describes what changed in that one version, nothing else.
When a review ends
Section titled “When a review ends”- Confirmed: the card becomes Act now, as above.
- Withdrawn: Subcloak checked the change and cleared it, or the review was issued in error. The card closes with “Withdrawn on DATE: Subcloak checked this change and cleared it. You can update as usual.” (or that it was issued in error), and a note that it was an automated flag, not a finding about the maintainers.
- Expired: an Under review card ends after at most 72 hours, and a Reported one after at most 14 days, if nothing else happens. The card closes with “This review ended without a confirmation from the registry or a public database.”
Disputes
Section titled “Disputes”Every Under review and Reported card has a Think this is wrong? line with disputes@subcloak.com and How disputes work. Maintainers and users can both use it. If Subcloak withdraws a review, the withdrawal goes to every Mac through the signed feed, and the card closes.
Free and paid
Section titled “Free and paid”| Free | Live Feed plan | |
|---|---|---|
| Under review and Reported cards | No | Yes, within minutes of a release being flagged |
| Confirmed (Removed by …, Confirmed: …) | Yes, at the next feed check | Yes |
| Withdrawals | Yes | Yes |
Under review is a head start, not a detection: free Macs get every confirmed release too, and every check and fix stays free. See Plans and pricing.
Privacy
Section titled “Privacy”The scanner works from public registry data on Subcloak’s servers. Nothing about your Mac is sent to it: Watch downloads the signed list of verdicts with the rest of the feed and matches it on your Mac, like every other feed item.