GHSA-4gc7-qcvf-38wg is a high-severity (CVSS 8.8) OS Command Injection vulnerability in openclaw. O3 Security confirms whether GHSA-4gc7-qcvf-38wg is actually reachable in your code before you act, and blocks exploitation at runtime until you patch.
In OpenClaw, manually adding sort to tools.exec.safeBins could bypass allowlist approval via --compress-program
Real-World Exposure
How broadly this vulnerability is actually deployed: weekly install volume shows current usage, a proxy for how much of the ecosystem is exposed.
openclawnpmDescription
Summary
This issue applies to a non-default configuration only.
If sort is manually added to tools.exec.safeBins, OpenClaw could treat sort --compress-program=<prog> as valid safe-bin usage.
In security=allowlist + ask=on-miss, this could satisfy allowlist checks and skip operator approval, while GNU sort may invoke an external program via --compress-program.
Affected Packages / Versions
- Ecosystem: npm
- Package:
openclaw - Affected:
<= 2026.2.21-2 - Patched (planned next release):
>= 2026.2.22
Default Installations
Default installs are not impacted by this specific path because sort is not included in default tools.exec.safeBins.
Impact
- Type: approval/allowlist bypass in optional safe-bin configuration
- Scope: deployments that explicitly include
sortintools.exec.safeBinsand useallowlist + ask=on-miss - Consequence: an external program may run under the OpenClaw process context without expected approval
Technical Details
sortsafe-bin profile allowed--compress-programas a value flag.- Safe-bin satisfaction could therefore mark allowlist checks as satisfied.
- In
ask=on-miss, satisfied allowlist checks skip approval prompts.
Fix
- Block
--compress-programin safe-bin sort policy. - Add unit and e2e regression coverage for
sort --compress-programdenial in safe-bin mode.
Fix Commit(s)
57fbbaebca4d34d17549accf6092ae26eb7b605c
OpenClaw thanks @tdjackey for reporting.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📦npm | openclaw | all versions | 2026.2.22 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for openclaw. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update openclaw to 2026.2.22 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-4gc7-qcvf-38wg is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How O3 protects you
O3 pinpoints whether GHSA-4gc7-qcvf-38wg is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to GHSA-4gc7-qcvf-38wg. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-4gc7-qcvf-38wg in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-4gc7-qcvf-38wg across npm dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.