Bc Check

You are auditing the current branch's diff against the PR's base branch for backward-compatibility risk against persisted user data and wire formats. Find cases where this PR will reject, mis-parse, or mishandle inputs that older versions of our own software already wrote to disk, to backups, or onto the network.

Do not trust the PR description's framing. "Just a security fix" / "stricter validation" is precisely the framing that hides this class of bug.

Before starting:

1. Read docs/bc-footguns.md if it exists. Every entry is a known constraint.
2. Determine the base branch and get the full diff:

   BASE=$(gh pr view --json baseRefName -q .baseRefName 2>/dev/null || echo "master")
   git diff origin/$BASE...HEAD
   

   If gh pr view fails (e.g. no open PR yet), fall back to origin/master.
3. Identify which files are on persistence paths (see WalletCore context below).

WalletCore persistence context

Blast-radius framing: a bug in any of these paths means a user cannot decrypt their wallet or derives wrong addresses → cannot access funds. Even a 0.01 % blast radius is unacceptable. Treat BLOCKER verdicts as such.

Walk the 5 steps below. Cite file:line and commit SHAs everywhere.

Step 1 — Classify

(a) Tighten input validation, (b) change parsing of a persisted format, (c) change which exception type a public API throws, (d) remove an if missing use default fallback, or (e) move validation earlier? If none → "No persistence risk", stop.

Step 2 — Historical baseline

For each tightened rule:

• Could a prior version have produced data that violates the new rule? git log -p / git blame going back ≥2 years. Cite SHAs.
• Was there a partial migration ("regenerate on next user action")? Assume a non-trivial fraction of users never triggered it.
• Does the format ever leave the device? Backup / export / sync.

Step 3 — Concrete failure scenarios

For every "yes": old client version → action that produced the data → where it lives → exact upgrade code path (file:line) → user-visible symptom → blast radius. No hand-waving.

Step 4 — Red-flag checklist

Answer yes/no with file:line evidence:

Generic:

• New throw on read/load/decode/import path?
• Removed if (field missing) use default?
• New length/range/enum check on >1-year-old field?
• Constructor: lenient parse → parse + validate?
• Changed which exception type a public API throws?
• Format ever in backup/export/sync?
• Prior PR shipped "regenerate on next user action" partial migration? (cite SHA)

WalletCore-specific:

• Proto: field number reused or removed from an existing message?
• Proto: field type changed (e.g. bytes → string) or required added to existing field?
• Proto: enum value renumbered or removed?
• Keystore: JSON key renamed, removed, or made required without a default fallback?
• Keystore: validate() now called from the JSON-load constructor for the first time?
• Registry: slip44, curve, or address-encoding field changed? (changes derived addresses)
• Registry: TWCoinType enum value reordered or removed?
• C ABI: TW* function removed, renamed, or its return / exception behaviour changed?

Step 5 — Required mitigations

• Accept legacy at read time, normalize on write (preferred).
• Gate strict check behind "newly created" flag.
• One-time migration with explicit failure UX.
• Apply tightening to write paths only.

Token rules for "Suggested PR comment"

N/A means the scanner fired on a file that has zero BC relevance (a renamed variable, a comment edit, a test fixture that happens to match the path filter). It does NOT mean "I found a real BC issue but accept the risk." Using N/A when the audit found a RISK or BLOCKER is incorrect and bypasses the gate dishonestly.

Risk-Accepted is for cases where the finding is real but investigation confirms the blast radius is effectively zero — e.g. telemetry or team confirmation that no user data in the wild can trigger the new restriction. It requires the same bar as Mitigated: full audit output pasted, plus explicit evidence for why the risk is acceptable (who confirmed it, what data or reasoning supports it). The audit trail must be visible to reviewers.

Output format

Emit all sections below as formatted markdown (bold, inline code, headers). Do not wrap the output in a code fence.

BC-risk audit — <branch> → <base-branch> @ <git SHA> — <ISO timestamp>

Verdict

<SAFE / RISK / BLOCKER> — one sentence.

Step 1 — Classification

...

Step 2 — Historical baseline

...

Step 3 — Concrete failure scenarios

...

Step 4 — Red-flag checklist

...

Step 5 — Required mitigations

...

Suggested PR comment

Emit this block as a GitHub-ready comment. Use markdown: bold for the verdict and key findings, inline code for file paths, function names, constants, commit SHAs, and token strings. Use a bullet list for multiple findings or mitigations if needed.

The comment body must follow this structure exactly so the workflow gate accepts it. Wrap it in a fenced code block labelled markdown so the author can copy the raw text. The author must paste only the content inside the fences into GitHub — not the ```markdown / ``` lines themselves.

```markdown
[bc-check: <token>]

# BC-risk audit — <branch> → <base-branch> @ <git SHA> — <ISO timestamp>

Verdict: <SAFE (after fix) | SAFE | RISK | BLOCKER>

<one-paragraph summary using **bold** and `inline code`>
```

Suggested addition to docs/bc-footguns.md

<draft entry, OR "none">

The skill never auto-posts to GitHub. Author copies the verdict + suggested comment into the PR; the human signs off.

Source: trustwallet/wallet-core — distributed by TomeVault.