CVE-2026-41384: Openclaw CLI Backend Environment Variable Injection Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-vfw7-6rhc-6xxg
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CVSS 7.8
CWE-15 CWE-426
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-41384 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.8) cli backend environment variable injection vulnerability (CWE-15: External Control of System or Configuration Setting) affecting Openclaw libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves cli backend environment variable injection via workspace config. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 2026.3.24.

CVE-2026-41384 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-41384
GHSA Identifier GHSA-vfw7-6rhc-6xxg
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.8
CWE Classification CWE-15: External Control of System or Configuration Setting
Affected Product Openclaw
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.8

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

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

How to Fix CVE-2026-41384

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: 2026.3.24 
npm install openclaw@2026.3.24
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-2026-41384, 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 2026.3.24), 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-15: External Control of System or Configuration Setting, where one or more system settings or configuration elements can be externally controlled by a user. 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 Incomplete Fix for CVE-2026-4039: CLI Backend Environment Variable Injection via Workspace Config ## Current Maintainer Triage - Status: open - Normalized severity: high - Assessment: Real shipped malicious-workspace-config env injection in the CLI backend runner, fixed by sanitizing backend env before spawn and shipped in v2026.3.24, so advisory stays open until published. ## Affected Packages / Versions - Package: `openclaw` (npm) - Latest published npm version: `2026.3.31` - Vulnerable version range: `<=2026.3.23-2` - Patched versions: `>= 2026.3.24` - First stable tag containing the fix: `v2026.3.24` ## Fix Commit(s) - `c2fb7f1948c3226732a630256b5179a60664ec24` — 2026-03-24T12:58:10-07:00 ## Release Process Note - The fix is already present in released version `2026.3.24`. - This draft looks ready for final maintainer disposition or publication, not additional code-fix work. Thanks @YLChen-007 for reporting.

CVE-2026-41384 Affected Openclaw Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
2026.3.24
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
openclaw
npm/openclaw
npm
< 2026.3.24
2026.3.24

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-vfw7-6rhc-6xxg
NVD — CVE-2026-41384 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-41384
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/c2fb7f1948c3226732a630256b5179a60664ec24
Openclaw Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw
www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw... WEB
https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-environment-variable-injection-via-workspace-config-in-cli-backend

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-41384?
CVE-2026-41384 is a security vulnerability in Openclaw involving CLI Backend Environment Variable Injection via Workspace Config under CWE-15: External Control of System or Configuration Setting.
Which Openclaw versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 2026.3.24 across affected packages: openclaw.
What version fixes CVE-2026-41384?
Upgrading to 2026.3.24 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is openclaw affected?
Yes, openclaw is affected in releases prior to 2026.3.24. Upgrade your dependency to 2026.3.24 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-41384?
CVE-2026-41384 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.8 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-41384?
CVE-2026-41384 is classified under CWE-15: External Control of System or Configuration Setting (One or more system settings or configuration elements can be externally controlled by a user.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2026-41384?
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-vfw7-6rhc-6xxg",
  "modified" : "2026-05-06T02:39:16Z",
  "published" : "2026-04-07T18:10:52Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-41384" ],
  "summary" : "OpenClaw Has Incomplete Fix for CVE-2026-4039: CLI Backend Environment Variable Injection via Workspace Config",
  "details" : "## Summary\nIncomplete Fix for CVE-2026-4039: CLI Backend Environment Variable Injection via Workspace Config\n\n## Current Maintainer Triage\n- Status: open\n- Normalized severity: high\n- Assessment: Real shipped malicious-workspace-config env injection in the CLI backend runner, fixed by sanitizing backend env before spawn and shipped in v2026.3.24, so advisory stays open until published.\n\n## Affected Packages / Versions\n- Package: `openclaw` (npm)\n- Latest published npm version: `2026.3.31`\n- Vulnerable version range: `<=2026.3.23-2`\n- Patched versions: `>= 2026.3.24`\n- First stable tag containing the fix: `v2026.3.24`\n\n## Fix Commit(s)\n- `c2fb7f1948c3226732a630256b5179a60664ec24` — 2026-03-24T12:58:10-07:00\n\n## Release Process Note\n- The fix is already present in released version `2026.3.24`.\n- This draft looks ready for final maintainer disposition or publication, not additional code-fix work.\n\nThanks @YLChen-007 for reporting.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  }, {
    "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" : "2026.3.24"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 2026.3.23-2"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-vfw7-6rhc-6xxg"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-41384"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/c2fb7f1948c3226732a630256b5179a60664ec24"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-environment-variable-injection-via-workspace-config-in-cli-backend"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-15", "CWE-426" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-04-07T18:10:52Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-04-28T19:37:41Z"
  }
}