CVE-2026-27522: OpenClaw Message Action Attachment Hydration Bypasses Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-fqcm-97m6-w7rm
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CWE-200 CWE-22
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-27522 is a HIGH message action attachment hydration bypasses vulnerability (CWE-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor) affecting OpenClaw libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves message action attachment hydration bypasses local media root checks when sandboxroot is unset. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 2026.2.24.

CVE-2026-27522 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-27522
GHSA Identifier GHSA-fqcm-97m6-w7rm
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score N/A
CWE Classification CWE-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor
Affected Product OpenClaw
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

How to Fix CVE-2026-27522

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: 2026.2.24 
npm install openclaw@2026.2.24
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-2026-27522, 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 2026.2.24), 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-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor, where the product exposes sensitive information to an actor that is not explicitly authorized to have access to that information. 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

## Impact `sendAttachment` and `setGroupIcon` message actions could hydrate media from local absolute paths when `sandboxRoot` was unset, bypassing intended local media root checks. This could allow reads of arbitrary host files reachable by the runtime user when an authorized message-action path was triggered. ## Affected Packages / Versions - Package: `openclaw` (npm) - Latest published npm version at triage: `2026.2.23` - Vulnerable: `<= 2026.2.23` - Patched in code: `>= 2026.2.24` (planned next release) ## Remediation Upgrade to `openclaw` `2026.2.24` or later once published. ## Fix Commit(s) - 270ab03e379f9653e15f7033c9830399b66b7e51 ## Release Process Note `patched_versions` is pre-set to the planned next release (`>= 2026.2.24`). Once that npm release is published, this advisory can be published without further field edits. OpenClaw thanks @GCXWLP for reporting. ### Publication Update (2026-02-25) `openclaw@2026.2.24` is published on npm and contains the fix commit(s) listed above. This advisory now marks `>= 2026.2.24` as patched.

CVE-2026-27522 Affected OpenClaw Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
2026.2.24
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
openclaw
npm/openclaw
npm
< 2026.2.24
2026.2.24

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-fqcm-97m6-w7rm
NVD — CVE-2026-27522 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-27522
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/270ab03e379f9653e15f7033c9830399b66b7e51
OpenClaw Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw
www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw... WEB
https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-arbitrary-file-read-via-sendattachment-and-setgroupicon-message-actions

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-27522?
CVE-2026-27522 is a security vulnerability in OpenClaw involving Message action attachment hydration bypasses local media root checks when sandboxRoot is unset under CWE-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor.
Which OpenClaw versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 2026.2.24 across affected packages: openclaw.
What version fixes CVE-2026-27522?
Upgrading to 2026.2.24 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is openclaw affected?
Yes, openclaw is affected in releases prior to 2026.2.24. Upgrade your dependency to 2026.2.24 or later.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-27522?
CVE-2026-27522 is classified under CWE-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor (The product exposes sensitive information to an actor that is not explicitly authorized to have access to that information.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2026-27522?
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-fqcm-97m6-w7rm",
  "modified" : "2026-03-18T21:50:04Z",
  "published" : "2026-03-02T23:34:02Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-27522" ],
  "summary" : "OpenClaw: Message action attachment hydration bypasses local media root checks when sandboxRoot is unset",
  "details" : "## Impact\n`sendAttachment` and `setGroupIcon` message actions could hydrate media from local absolute paths when `sandboxRoot` was unset, bypassing intended local media root checks. This could allow reads of arbitrary host files reachable by the runtime user when an authorized message-action path was triggered.\n\n## Affected Packages / Versions\n- Package: `openclaw` (npm)\n- Latest published npm version at triage: `2026.2.23`\n- Vulnerable: `<= 2026.2.23`\n- Patched in code: `>= 2026.2.24` (planned next release)\n\n## Remediation\nUpgrade to `openclaw` `2026.2.24` or later once published.\n\n## Fix Commit(s)\n- 270ab03e379f9653e15f7033c9830399b66b7e51\n\n## Release Process Note\n`patched_versions` is pre-set to the planned next release (`>= 2026.2.24`). Once that npm release is published, this advisory can be published without further field edits.\n\nOpenClaw thanks @GCXWLP for reporting.\n\n\n### Publication Update (2026-02-25)\n`openclaw@2026.2.24` is published on npm and contains the fix commit(s) listed above. This advisory now marks `>= 2026.2.24` as patched.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "openclaw"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2026.2.24"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 2026.2.23"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-fqcm-97m6-w7rm"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-27522"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/270ab03e379f9653e15f7033c9830399b66b7e51"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-arbitrary-file-read-via-sendattachment-and-setgroupicon-message-actions"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-200", "CWE-22" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-03-02T23:34:02Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-03-18T02:16:23Z"
  }
}