OpenClaw: system.run allow-always persistence included shell-commented payload tails

Exploitation

No confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next marks exploitation only from CISA KEV.

CVSS

5.0 · CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

EPSS

No dated EPSS signal available.

As published by the source; long descriptions are shortened.

OpenClaw's system.run allowlist analysis did not honor POSIX shell comment semantics when deriving allow-always persistence entries. A caller in security=allowlist mode who received an allow-always decision could submit a shell command whose tail was commented out at runtime, for example by using an unquoted

before a chained payload. The runtime shell would execute only the pre-comment portion, but allowlist persistence could still analyze and store the non-executed tail as a trusted follow-up command. Latest published npm version: 2026.3.2 Fixed on main on March 7, 2026 in 939b18475d734ed75173f59507e3ebbdfe1992b7 by teaching shell tokenization and chain/pipeline analysis to stop at unquoted shell comments, so allow-always persistence now tracks only commands that the shell can actually execute. Normal real chained commands and quoted

literals continue to work. Affected Packages / Versions - Package: openclaw (npm) - Affected versions: <= 2026.3.2 - Patched version: = 2026.3.7…

Published by the source

9 Mar 2026, 19:54 UTC

Last modified by the source

9 Mar 2026, 20:01 UTC

Source last checked

26 Oct 2026, 12:43 UTC

1. Revision 2 · amended · 26 Oct 2026

   Amended from ghsa record GHSA-9q2p-vc84-2rwm

2. Revision 1 · created · 24 Oct 2026

   Published from osv record GHSA-9q2p-vc84-2rwm

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# Patch Next advisory brief: GHSA-9q2p-vc84-2rwm

Advisory: OpenClaw: system.run allow-always persistence included shell-commented payload tails
IDs: GHSA-9q2p-vc84-2rwm
Record: https://patchnext.com/advisories/ghsa-9q2p-vc84-2rwm (revision 2, source checked 26 Oct 2026, 12:43 UTC)
Inventory: none attached. This brief comes from a public page and does not say whether any deployment is affected.
Severity: Medium (CVSS 5.0)
Exploitation: no confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next confirms exploitation only from CISA KEV.
Vendor response: Vendor fix available; fixed versions by package: openclaw 2026.3.7. A vendor fix does not mean a deployment is fixed.

## Affected components
- npm openclaw: affected <= 2026.3.2; fixed in 2026.3.7

## Suggested inspection (read-only)
- `npm ls openclaw --all`: lists every installed copy and version, including transitive ones. Run in the project root after `npm ci`.

## Supported action
Upgrade each affected component to a fixed version on its release line. For a transitive dependency, upgrade the parent package or add an override or constraint, then regenerate the lockfile. Redeploy every environment that ran an affected version.

## Required regression checks
- Run the test suite and a production build.
- Exercise the features that depend on openclaw.
- Repeat the inspection and confirm that only fixed versions remain installed.

## Rollback considerations
- Keep the previous lockfile and deployment artifact. Rolling back reinstates the vulnerable version, so apply any documented mitigation while you fix forward.

## Unresolved questions
- Which deployments run an affected version?
- Exploitation status can change. Check again before lowering the priority.
- Mark the work resolved only after the fixed version is verified in production.

## Sources
- Verified: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/GHSA-9q2p-vc84-2rwm (OSV record GHSA-9q2p-vc84-2rwm lists affected ranges: npm openclaw >=0 <2026.3.7 (fixed))
- Verified: https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-9q2p-vc84-2rwm (GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-9q2p-vc84-2rwm lists affected ranges: npm openclaw >=0 <=2026.3.2)

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