Privilege Escalation in OpenClaw via Command Authentication Bypass

Compliance Impact

The provided information does not specify any direct impact of this vulnerability on compliance with common standards and regulations such as GDPR or HIPAA.

Useful 0 Not Useful 0

Executive Summary

This vulnerability exists in OpenClaw versions before 2026.4.25 and involves a flaw in internal and webchat command authentication.

Specifically, the issue allows senders to inherit a wildcard ownerAllowFrom state across different channel boundaries, meaning that commands intended to be restricted to certain channels can be executed with owner-level permissions in other channels.

Attackers can exploit this by sending commands on affected internal or webchat paths to perform owner-style command behavior outside the intended channel scope, potentially bypassing access controls.

Useful 0 Not Useful 0

Impact Analysis

The vulnerability can lead to privilege escalation, allowing attackers with low privileges to execute commands with owner-level permissions.

This can result in unauthorized actions being performed across channel boundaries, potentially compromising the integrity of the system.

The impact depends on the operator's configuration and whether lower-trust input can reach the affected paths.

There is no impact on confidentiality or availability, but the integrity of the system is at high risk.

Useful 0 Not Useful 0

Mitigation Strategies

To mitigate this vulnerability in OpenClaw versions before 2026.4.25, you should upgrade to version 2026.4.25 or later where the issue is patched.

• Keep owner command allowlists explicit per channel.
• Narrow channel and tool allowlists to limit access.
• Avoid shared Gateways between untrusted users.
• Disable the affected feature when it is not needed.

Useful 0 Not Useful 0