@twotalltotems/react-native-otp-input: A Security Guide

The biggest security concern with @twotalltotems/react-native-otp-input is that it is effectively unmaintained: its last npm release, 1.3.11, was published around six years ago, so no future bug or vulnerability will be fixed upstream. The component itself is a straightforward one-time-password entry field for React Native, and it still gets thousands of weekly downloads, but building new authentication UI on an abandoned dependency is a risk you take on knowingly. This guide covers what the package does, why its maintenance status matters, and how to use it safely or replace it.

What the package does

@twotalltotems/react-native-otp-input renders the row of single-character boxes users type a one-time code into, handling focus movement and paste behavior so you do not have to build it by hand. Usage is minimal:

import OTPInputView from '@twotalltotems/react-native-otp-input';

<OTPInputView
  pinCount={6}
  autoFocusOnLoad
  onCodeFilled={(code) => verify(code)}
/>

There is nothing inherently dangerous about the component's job. It collects digits and hands them back to your code. The OTP verification itself, checking the code against what your backend issued, happens on the server and is entirely your responsibility. The library is just the input widget.

Why the maintenance status is the real issue

An abandoned dependency is not automatically vulnerable, but it accumulates risk over time for reasons that compound:

No fixes are coming. If a security issue is found in the package or one of its dependencies, there will be no upstream patch. You are on your own to fork and fix, or to migrate. A package that hasn't been published to in roughly six years should be treated as end-of-life for planning purposes, even though it is not formally marked deprecated on npm.

Its dependency tree is frozen in the past. A component this old pins transitive dependencies to versions that themselves may have since disclosed advisories. Those do not get bumped, so the known-vulnerability surface only grows as new CVEs are published against the old versions. This is exactly the kind of transitive exposure an SCA tool such as Safeguard can surface, because the problem is usually not the top-level package but what sits beneath it.

Compatibility drift. As React Native itself moves forward, an unmaintained component eventually breaks against new versions, new architecture changes, or updated build tooling. Teams then get pushed toward the second risk: pulling in an unofficial fork from a stranger to keep things building, which adds a new, unvetted maintainer to your supply chain for code that sits directly in your login flow.

If you must keep using it

Sometimes ripping out a working auth screen is not this sprint's priority. If you are staying on it for now, reduce the exposure:

1. Pin the exact version in your lockfile and commit it, so you always know precisely what is installed.
2. Run SCA scanning in CI against the full dependency tree, not just the top-level package, so any advisory in the frozen transitive dependencies is flagged.
3. Keep all real security logic, rate limiting, code expiry, attempt lockout, and verification, on the server. The input component must never be a trust boundary.
4. Treat pasted content as untrusted like any other input; validate that what reaches your verify call is the expected length and character set.
5. Put a ticket in the backlog to migrate. "Working" and "maintained" are different states, and this package is only the former.

Choosing a replacement

The healthiest move is to migrate to an actively maintained OTP input, or to build a small one yourself, since the widget's logic is not complex. When you evaluate a replacement, weigh maintenance signals as heavily as features: recent releases, a responsive issue tracker, a shallow and current dependency tree, and download trends that are stable rather than purely legacy. The same evaluation applies to any React Native component you pull into an authentication screen, where the blast radius of a compromised or broken dependency is high. Our security academy has guidance on scoring dependency health before you adopt.

FAQ

Is @twotalltotems/react-native-otp-input safe to use?

The component's own logic is simple and not inherently dangerous, but the package is effectively unmaintained, with its last release published around six years ago. That means no upstream fixes and a frozen, aging dependency tree, so treat it as end-of-life and plan a migration.

Is the package deprecated?

It is not formally marked deprecated on npm, but it hasn't received a new version in years and is not actively maintained. For risk-planning purposes that is functionally end-of-life.

What are the actual risks of using it?

Chiefly that no security fixes will ever ship, its old transitive dependencies may carry known CVEs that never get bumped, and compatibility drift can push you toward unvetted forks. None of these are exploits in the widget itself; they are the consequences of abandonment.

What should I use instead?

Migrate to an actively maintained OTP input component, or build a small one yourself since the logic is minimal. Evaluate any replacement on maintenance signals, recent releases, a healthy issue tracker, and a shallow up-to-date dependency tree, not just features.