CVE-2026-28363: Openclaw OpenClaw Is Vulnerable To Validation Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-7977-c43c-xpwj
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CVSS 9.9
CWE-184
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-28363 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.9) openclaw is vulnerable to validation vulnerability (CWE-184: Incomplete List of Disallowed Inputs) affecting Openclaw libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves openclaw is vulnerable to validation bypass through gnu long-option abbreviations in allowlist mode. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 2026.2.23.

CVE-2026-28363 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-28363
GHSA Identifier GHSA-7977-c43c-xpwj
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.9
CWE Classification CWE-184: Incomplete List of Disallowed Inputs
Affected Product Openclaw
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 9.9

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required Low (PR:L)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Changed (S:C)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2026-28363

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Openclaw dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

openclaw fixed: 2026.2.23 
npm install openclaw@2026.2.23
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

npm ls openclaw

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2026-28363, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls openclaw

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Openclaw in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 2026.2.23), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls openclaw command inspects dependencies declared in your package.json and lockfile; it does not perform automated runtime dynamic scanning.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-184: Incomplete List of Disallowed Inputs, where the product implements a protection mechanism that relies on a list of inputs (or properties of inputs) that are not allowed by policy or otherwise require other action to neutralize before additional processing takes place, but the list is incomplete. In Openclaw, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

In OpenClaw before 2026.2.23, tools.exec.safeBins validation for sort could be bypassed via GNU long-option abbreviations (such as --compress-prog) in allowlist mode, leading to approval-free execution paths that were intended to require approval. Only an exact string such as --compress-program was denied.

CVE-2026-28363 Affected Openclaw Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
2026.2.23
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
openclaw
npm/openclaw
npm
< 2026.2.23
2026.2.23

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-3c6h-g97w-fg78
NVD — CVE-2026-28363 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-28363
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/3b8e33037ae2e12af7beb56fcf0346f1f8cbde6f
Openclaw Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw
Openclaw Release RELEASE
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/releases/tag/v2026.2.23

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-28363?
CVE-2026-28363 is a security vulnerability in Openclaw involving OpenClaw is vulnerable to validation bypass through GNU long-option abbreviations in allowlist mode under CWE-184: Incomplete List of Disallowed Inputs.
Which Openclaw versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 2026.2.23 across affected packages: openclaw.
What version fixes CVE-2026-28363?
Upgrading to 2026.2.23 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is openclaw affected?
Yes, openclaw is affected in releases prior to 2026.2.23. Upgrade your dependency to 2026.2.23 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-28363?
CVE-2026-28363 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.9 (CRITICAL) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-28363?
CVE-2026-28363 is classified under CWE-184: Incomplete List of Disallowed Inputs (The product implements a protection mechanism that relies on a list of inputs (or properties of inputs) that are not allowed by policy or otherwise require other action to neutralize before additional processing takes place, but the list is incomplete.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2026-28363?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls openclaw'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-7977-c43c-xpwj",
  "modified" : "2026-02-28T02:17:24Z",
  "published" : "2026-02-27T06:31:28Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-28363" ],
  "summary" : "OpenClaw is vulnerable to validation bypass through GNU long-option abbreviations in allowlist mode",
  "details" : "In OpenClaw before 2026.2.23, tools.exec.safeBins validation for sort could be bypassed via GNU long-option abbreviations (such as --compress-prog) in allowlist mode, leading to approval-free execution paths that were intended to require approval. Only an exact string such as --compress-program was denied.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "openclaw"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2026.2.23"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-3c6h-g97w-fg78"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-28363"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/3b8e33037ae2e12af7beb56fcf0346f1f8cbde6f"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/releases/tag/v2026.2.23"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-184" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-02-28T02:17:24Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-02-27T04:16:03Z"
  }
}