CVE-2026-27545: OpenClaw Node System.run Approval Bypass Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-f7ww-2725-qvw2
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CWE-367 CWE-59
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-27545 is a HIGH node system.run approval bypass vulnerability (CWE-367: Time-of-check Time-of-use (TOCTOU) Race Condition) affecting OpenClaw libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves node system.run approval bypass via parent-symlink cwd rebind. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 2026.2.26.

CVE-2026-27545 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-27545
GHSA Identifier GHSA-f7ww-2725-qvw2
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score N/A
CWE Classification CWE-367: Time-of-check Time-of-use (TOCTOU) Race Condition
Affected Product OpenClaw
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

How to Fix CVE-2026-27545

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: 2026.2.26 
npm install openclaw@2026.2.26
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-2026-27545, 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 2026.2.26), 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-367: Time-of-check Time-of-use (TOCTOU) Race Condition, where the product checks the state of a resource before using that resource, but the resource's state can change between the check and the use in a way that invalidates the results of the check. 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

## Summary For `host=node` executions, approval context could be bypassed after approval-time by rebinding a writable parent symlink in `cwd` while preserving the visible `cwd` string. ## Affected Packages / Versions - Package: `openclaw` (npm) - Affected: `<= 2026.2.25` - Fixed: `>= 2026.2.26` (planned next npm release) ## Impact A command approved for one filesystem location could execute from a different location if a mutable parent symlink changed between approval and execution. ## Fix - Added immutable approval-time plan preparation (`system.run.prepare`) and `systemRunPlanV2` canonical fields (`argv`, `cwd`, `agentId`, `sessionKey`). - Enforced canonical plan values through approval request storage and forwarding-time sanitization. - Rejected mutable parent-symlink path components during approval-plan building to block symlink rebind bypass. - Follow-up refactors centralized command catalogs and approval context/error handling to reduce future drift. ## Fix Commit(s) - `78a7ff2d50fb3bcef351571cb5a0f21430a340c1` - `d82c042b09727a6148f3ca651b254c4a677aff26` - `d06632ba45a8482192792c55d5ff0b2e21abb0a7` - `4e690e09c746408b5e27617a20cb3fdc5190dbda` - `4b4718c8dfce2e2c48404aa5088af7c013bed60b` ## Release Process Note `patched_versions` is pre-set to the planned next release (`2026.2.26`). Once npm `openclaw@2026.2.26` is published, publish this advisory directly without further version-field edits. OpenClaw thanks @tdjackey for reporting.

CVE-2026-27545 Affected OpenClaw Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
2026.2.26
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
openclaw
npm/openclaw
npm
< 2026.2.26
2026.2.26

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-f7ww-2725-qvw2
NVD — CVE-2026-27545 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-27545
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/4b4718c8dfce2e2c48404aa5088af7c013bed60b
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/4e690e09c746408b5e27617a20cb3fdc5190dbda
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/78a7ff2d50fb3bcef351571cb5a0f21430a340c1
OpenClaw Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/d06632ba45a8482192792c55d5ff0b2e21abb0a7
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/d82c042b09727a6148f3ca651b254c4a677aff26
www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw... WEB
https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-approval-bypass-via-parent-symlink-current-working-directory-rebind

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-27545?
CVE-2026-27545 is a security vulnerability in OpenClaw involving Node system.run approval bypass via parent-symlink cwd rebind under CWE-367: Time-of-check Time-of-use (TOCTOU) Race Condition.
Which OpenClaw versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 2026.2.26 across affected packages: openclaw.
What version fixes CVE-2026-27545?
Upgrading to 2026.2.26 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is openclaw affected?
Yes, openclaw is affected in releases prior to 2026.2.26. Upgrade your dependency to 2026.2.26 or later.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-27545?
CVE-2026-27545 is classified under CWE-367: Time-of-check Time-of-use (TOCTOU) Race Condition (The product checks the state of a resource before using that resource, but the resource's state can change between the check and the use in a way that invalidates the results of the check.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2026-27545?
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-f7ww-2725-qvw2",
  "modified" : "2026-03-18T21:53:47Z",
  "published" : "2026-03-02T23:35:56Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-27545" ],
  "summary" : "OpenClaw: Node system.run approval bypass via parent-symlink cwd rebind",
  "details" : "## Summary\nFor `host=node` executions, approval context could be bypassed after approval-time by rebinding a writable parent symlink in `cwd` while preserving the visible `cwd` string.\n\n## Affected Packages / Versions\n- Package: `openclaw` (npm)\n- Affected: `<= 2026.2.25`\n- Fixed: `>= 2026.2.26` (planned next npm release)\n\n## Impact\nA command approved for one filesystem location could execute from a different location if a mutable parent symlink changed between approval and execution.\n\n## Fix\n- Added immutable approval-time plan preparation (`system.run.prepare`) and `systemRunPlanV2` canonical fields (`argv`, `cwd`, `agentId`, `sessionKey`).\n- Enforced canonical plan values through approval request storage and forwarding-time sanitization.\n- Rejected mutable parent-symlink path components during approval-plan building to block symlink rebind bypass.\n- Follow-up refactors centralized command catalogs and approval context/error handling to reduce future drift.\n\n## Fix Commit(s)\n- `78a7ff2d50fb3bcef351571cb5a0f21430a340c1`\n- `d82c042b09727a6148f3ca651b254c4a677aff26`\n- `d06632ba45a8482192792c55d5ff0b2e21abb0a7`\n- `4e690e09c746408b5e27617a20cb3fdc5190dbda`\n- `4b4718c8dfce2e2c48404aa5088af7c013bed60b`\n\n## Release Process Note\n`patched_versions` is pre-set to the planned next release (`2026.2.26`). Once npm `openclaw@2026.2.26` is published, publish this advisory directly without further version-field edits.\n\nOpenClaw thanks @tdjackey for reporting.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "openclaw"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2026.2.26"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 2026.2.25"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-f7ww-2725-qvw2"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-27545"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/4b4718c8dfce2e2c48404aa5088af7c013bed60b"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/4e690e09c746408b5e27617a20cb3fdc5190dbda"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/78a7ff2d50fb3bcef351571cb5a0f21430a340c1"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/d06632ba45a8482192792c55d5ff0b2e21abb0a7"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/d82c042b09727a6148f3ca651b254c4a677aff26"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-approval-bypass-via-parent-symlink-current-working-directory-rebind"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-367", "CWE-59" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-03-02T23:35:56Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-03-18T02:16:23Z"
  }
}