CVE-2026-28473
highpriority · track · 0OT risk · elevatedEPSS 0.003 · 22 %ileDEEURUUSEPSS · scored 2026-10-27
OpenClaw versions prior to 2026.2.2 contain an authorization bypass vulnerability where clients with operator.write scope can approve or deny exec approval requests by sending the /approve chat command. The /approve command path invokes exec.approval.resolve through an internal privileged gateway client, bypassing the operator.approvals permission check that protects direct RPC calls.
cvss
Technical severity, 0–10. One row per scoring source.
base score 0–10 · higher = more severe · hover a vector to decode⚠ sources disagree · medium–high · 5.1–8.1
ssvc
A stakeholder decision — act, attend, or track — from exploitation and impact.
weaknesses
The CWE weakness classes this flaw belongs to.
affected products (6)
Products and version ranges known to be affected.
advisories (2)
Vendor and ecosystem advisories describing this.
- WID-SEC-W-2026-0424OpenClaw: Mehrere SchwachstellenDeutsch2026-02-15csaf · cert_bundDE
Ein Angreifer kann diese Schwachstellen in OpenClaw ausnutzen, um beliebigen Programmcode auszuführen, sich erhöhte Berechtigungen zu verschaffen, Sicherheitsmaßnahmen zu umgehen, Daten zu manipulieren, einen Denial-of-Service-Zustand herbeizuführen, vertrauliche Informationen offenzulegen oder andere, nicht näher bezeichnete Angriffe durchzuführen.
- GHSA-mqpw-46fh-299hOpenClaw authorization bypass: operator.write can resolve exec approvals via chat.send -> /approve2026-02-17ghsa · osvUS
## Summary ### What this means (plain language) If you give a client “chat/write” access to the gateway (`operator.write`) but you do not intend to let that client approve exec requests (`operator.approvals`), affected versions could still let that client approve/deny a pending exec approval by sending the `/approve` chat command. This is mainly relevant for shared or multi-client setups where different tokens are intentionally scoped differently. Single-operator installs are typically less impacted. ### Technical summary A gateway client authenticated with a device token scoped only to `operator.write` (without `operator.approvals`) could approve/deny pending exec approval requests by sending a chat message containing the built-in `/approve` command. `exec.approval.resolve` is correctly scoped to `operator.approvals` for direct RPC calls, but the `/approve` command path invoked it via an internal privileged gateway client. ## Affected Packages / Versions - `openclaw` (npm): `< 2026.2.2` ## Fix - Fixed in `openclaw` `2026.2.2`. - Fix commit(s): `efe2a464afcff55bb5a95b959e6bd9ec0fef086e`. - Change: when `/approve` is invoked from gateway clients (webchat/internal channel), it now requires the requesting client to have `operator.approvals` (or `operator.admin`). ## Workarounds - Upgrade to `openclaw >= 2026.2.2`. - If you cannot upgrade: avoid issuing write-only device tokens to untrusted clients; disable text commands (`commands.text=false`) or restrict access to the webchat/control UI. ## References - Fix: `src/auto-reply/reply/commands-approve.ts` - Coverage: `src/auto-reply/reply/commands-approve.test.ts` ## Release Process Note This advisory is kept in draft; once the fixed npm versions are available, it can be published without further edits. Thanks @yueyueL for reporting.
also known as (4)
Other names and identifiers for this entity.
sources
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references (10)
External citations — patches, advisories, analysis.
- https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/efe2a464afcff55bb5a95b959e6bd9ec0fef086ecnnvd
- https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/releasesPatchcnnvd
- https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-mqpw-46fh-299hcnnvd
- https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-authorization-bypass-via-approve-chat-commandcnnvd
- https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/efe2a464afcff55bb5a95b959e6bd9ec0fef086eenisa_euvd
- https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-mqpw-46fh-299henisa_euvd
- https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-authorization-bypass-via-approve-chat-commandenisa_euvd
- https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/efe2a464afcff55bb5a95b959e6bd9ec0fef086ePatchnvd
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