# NousResearch/hermes-agent · Corrupt config triggers silent paid model fallback

## Open now

- Nothing open on GitHub.

A corrupt config.yaml causes silent fallback to a paid OpenRouter default model and automatic API key ingestion, potentially incurring real charges without operator consent. These members address detection and rejection of corrupt configs in CLI and non-interactive contexts to prevent this behavior.

## TL;DR

- 4 member(s): 0 open issue(s), 1 closed issue(s), 0 open PR(s), 2 merged PR(s), 1 PR(s) closed without merging.
- A fix was merged to main in PR #100156. Verify it addresses your case.
- **Recommended:** read PR #100156 (and any competing PRs below) before filing. Confirm the merged change covers your symptom.

## Maintainer resolution verdict

- Internal-tracker verdict over this cluster's issue members: `resolved` · deciding PR(s): `pr-100153`. This is distinct from the fix status above. Weigh it yourself.

## How this cluster was grouped

- Link evidence (`STRUCTURAL_SPANNING`): every member is connected by structural evidence: shared changed files, or a closing/superseded reference.
- Pairwise link density `0.50`: the share of member pairs that carry a link, counting a structural link in full and a relevance-only link at 0.36. `1.00` means every pair is linked.

## Closed / duplicate issues

- #81952: Corrupt profile config silently falls back to a paid OpenRouter default model and auto-ingests OPENROUTER_API_KEY — real-money spend without operator consent

## Prior & competing PRs

- **#100153: fix: fail closed on corrupt config.yaml in non-interactive runs (salvage #81988, extended to gateway/serve/cron)**. merged to main · fix tier `verified`
  - maintainer direction: category `merged`
  - files: `cron/scheduler.py`, `gateway/run.py`, `hermes_cli/config.py`, `hermes_cli/main.py`, `tests/hermes_cli/test_config_guard_surfaces.py`, `tests/hermes_cli/test_noninteractive_config_guard.py`
- **#100156: fix(auth): purge silent OpenRouter paid-default adoption (#81952 class fix)**. merged to main · fix tier `verified`
  - maintainer direction: category `merged`
  - files: `agent/auxiliary_client.py`, `agent/credential_pool.py`, `hermes_cli/auth.py`, `hermes_cli/config.py`, `tests/agent/test_auxiliary_client.py`, `tests/agent/test_openrouter_silent_default_purge.py`, `tests/hermes_cli/test_resolve_provider_corrupt_config.py`
- **#81988: fix(cli): reject corrupt config in noninteractive runs**. closed without merge
  - maintainer direction: category `implemented_elsewhere`; implication `superseded`; refs `#100153`

## Fix status

- Merged to main in PR #100156 (cited above). No release data is tracked. Verify downstream.
- Fix last verified (merged) `2026-09-01`.
- Subsystem: `hermes_cli`