Ripple Tool

What This Extension Does

The Ripple Tool extension provides mental health sign posting functionality within a browser, falling under the Lifestyle/Well Being category.

Permissions Explained

• storage: Allows the extension to read and write data in the user's browser storage, which is standard for extensions that need to store or retrieve user-specific data. This permission is expected for an extension providing personalized mental health resources.
• No other permissions are declared beyond storage.

What We Found in the Code

• [medium] innerHTML assignment — potential XSS vector: The use of innerHTML can be a potential cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability if untrusted data is inserted into it. However, without more context, it's difficult to determine if this is an issue here. If used for UI rendering with trusted data, this would not be concerning.
• [info] Makes HTTP requests: This flag indicates that the extension makes external API calls, which is a normal pattern for extensions interacting with services or retrieving data from the internet. The domains it communicates with (listed below) appear to be related to its functionality.
• [medium] Potential data exfiltration pattern: This flag suggests that the extension might be sending data outside of what's expected for its declared purpose. However, without more information on what data is being sent and where, it's hard to assess the severity.

External Connections

The extension communicates with:

• cms.ripplesuicideprevention.com: A domain related to the extension's functionality, suggesting a connection to its content management system.
• api-js.mixpanel.com, mixpanel.com, cdn.mxpnl.com: These domains are associated with Mixpanel, a service used for analytics and user engagement tracking. Their presence is expected given the extension's need to track user interactions.

Things to Consider

Given the extension's purpose and declared permissions, it seems that most of its functionality aligns with what one would expect from an extension providing mental health resources within a browser. However, the potential data exfiltration pattern warrants closer inspection to understand if the extension is sending more data than necessary for its operation. Users might want to review the extension's privacy policy and consider whether the permissions declared are sufficient for its claimed functionality.