Shell Approval Bypass in OpenClaw system.run Dispatch Wrapper

Executive Summary

This vulnerability exists in OpenClaw versions prior to 2026.3.7 and involves a shell approval gating bypass. Specifically, it occurs in the system.run dispatch-wrapper handling, where attackers can bypass the shell wrapper approval requirements.

The issue arises because the approval classifier and execution planner apply different depth-boundary rules. This discrepancy allows exactly four transparent dispatch wrappers, such as repeated environment invocations before the command /bin/sh -c, to bypass the security allowlist approval gating by misaligning classification with execution planning.

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Impact Analysis

This vulnerability allows attackers to bypass shell wrapper approval requirements, potentially enabling unauthorized command execution or actions that should be restricted by security policies.

Because the security allowlist gating can be circumvented, attackers might execute commands without proper authorization, which could lead to privilege escalation or unauthorized system access depending on the environment and usage.

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Compliance Impact

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Detection Guidance

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Mitigation Strategies

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