A critical arbitrary file read vulnerability in OpenClaw allows unauthorized access to local system files, potentially exposing sensitive data stored on the host or node.

This vulnerability involves improper neutralization of special elements used in OS commands (CWE-78). The allowlist validation checks tokens before shell expansion, but the execution process performs real shell expansion, enabling attackers to manipulate safe binaries like head, tail, or grep to read arbitrary files.

The ability to read arbitrary files can lead to the exposure of sensitive configuration files, environment variables, and system credentials, severely compromising the confidentiality of the affected gateway or node. Given the CVSS score of 8.4, this vulnerability represents a high risk that could lead to full system enumeration and subsequent privilege escalation or lateral movement.

Immediate Action: Update the OpenClaw package to version 2026.2.14 or later to implement the corrected allowlist validation logic.

Proactive Monitoring: Review system and application logs for anomalous execution patterns involving common command-line utilities such as head, tail, or grep.

Compensating Controls: If immediate patching is not feasible, restrict the use of host execution mode in the allowlist configuration to minimize the attack surface.

Public Exploit Available: No (exploit_available unknown).

Organizations utilizing OpenClaw must prioritize updating to version 2026.2.14 to remediate this improper validation flaw. The discrepancy between the pre-expansion check and the actual execution environment is a significant security oversight that requires immediate attention to prevent unauthorized local file disclosure.