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steipete

Video Transcript Downloader

by Peter Steinberger · GitHub ↗ · v1.0.0
cross-platform ⚠ suspicious
14155
Downloads
86
Stars
0
Active Installs
1
Versions
Install in OpenClaw
/install video-transcript-downloader
Description
Download videos, audio, subtitles, and clean paragraph-style transcripts from YouTube and any other yt-dlp supported site. Use when asked to “download this video”, “save this clip”, “rip audio”, “get subtitles”, “get transcript”, or to troubleshoot yt-dlp/ffmpeg and formats/playlists.
Usage Guidance
Install only if you are comfortable with a skill that can run yt-dlp/ffmpeg and save remote media locally. Review every command before execution, choose output directories deliberately, and do not let untrusted page content or prompts supply extra yt-dlp arguments after --, especially options that execute commands or change output paths.
Capability Analysis
Type: OpenClaw Skill Name: video-transcript-downloader Version: 1.0.0 The skill is classified as suspicious due to its use of `node:child_process.spawn` to execute external binaries (`yt-dlp`, `ffmpeg`) and, critically, its explicit forwarding of arbitrary user-supplied arguments (`opts.extra`) directly to `yt-dlp` in `scripts/vtd.js`. This passthrough mechanism, documented in `SKILL.md`, allows for command injection into `yt-dlp`'s powerful `--exec` option, which could lead to arbitrary code execution if the AI agent is prompted to pass malicious arguments. While this capability is plausibly needed for advanced `yt-dlp` usage, it significantly increases the attack surface for prompt injection against the agent, making it a risky capability without clear malicious intent from the skill itself.
Capability Assessment
Purpose & Capability
Downloading transcripts, subtitles, audio, and video from supported sites is coherent with the stated purpose, and use of yt-dlp/ffmpeg is expected for that purpose.
Instruction Scope
SKILL.md documents passing extra yt-dlp arguments after --, and scripts/vtd.js forwards those arguments unchanged to yt-dlp for transcript fallback, downloads, audio, subtitles, and formats. This broad escape hatch includes options such as yt-dlp --exec and is not bounded by allowlists or explicit confirmation guidance.
Install Mechanism
Installation is a normal npm ci flow with a package-lock present; package.json still uses a caret dependency range, but npm ci should install the locked youtube-transcript-plus version.
Credentials
Network access, local file creation, PATH lookup, and external binary execution are proportionate to the downloader purpose, but the extra-argument passthrough expands the environment impact beyond the safer built-in commands.
Persistence & Privilege
The script writes requested media or subtitle outputs to the chosen output directory, defaults to Downloads, and removes temporary subtitle directories. No hidden persistence, credential access, or privilege escalation was found.
How to Use
  1. Make sure OpenClaw is installed (local or Docker)
  2. Run the install command in chat: /install video-transcript-downloader
  3. After installation, invoke the skill by name or use /video-transcript-downloader
  4. Provide required inputs per the skill's parameter spec and get structured output
Version History
v1.0.0
Metadata
Slug video-transcript-downloader
Version 1.0.0
License
All-time Installs 0
Active Installs 0
Total Versions 1
Frequently Asked Questions

What is Video Transcript Downloader?

Download videos, audio, subtitles, and clean paragraph-style transcripts from YouTube and any other yt-dlp supported site. Use when asked to “download this video”, “save this clip”, “rip audio”, “get subtitles”, “get transcript”, or to troubleshoot yt-dlp/ffmpeg and formats/playlists. It is an AI Agent Skill for Claude Code / OpenClaw, with 14155 downloads so far.

How do I install Video Transcript Downloader?

Run "/install video-transcript-downloader" in the OpenClaw or Claude Code chat to install it in one step — no extra setup required.

Is Video Transcript Downloader free?

Yes, Video Transcript Downloader is completely free (open-source). You can download, install and use it at no cost.

Which platforms does Video Transcript Downloader support?

Video Transcript Downloader is cross-platform and runs anywhere OpenClaw / Claude Code is available (cross-platform).

Who created Video Transcript Downloader?

It is built and maintained by Peter Steinberger (@steipete); the current version is v1.0.0.

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