GHSA-xgf2-vxv2-rrmg is a high-severity (CVSS 7.5) OS Command Injection vulnerability in openclaw. A fix is available for openclaw — see the affected versions and patch details below.
OpenClaw's shell startup env injection bypasses system.run allowlist intent (RCE class)
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
- CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for GHSA-xgf2-vxv2-rrmg.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.
How urgent is this, really
GHSA-xgf2-vxv2-rrmg plotted by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). The shaded corner — EPSS 50%+ and CVSS 7.0+ — is where this CVE doesn't sit, though severity or exploitability alone can still warrant action.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 377,166 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
How broadly this vulnerability is actually deployed: weekly install volume shows current usage, and reverse-dependency count shows how many other packages break if it stays unpatched.
openclawnpmDescription
Summary
system.run environment sanitization allowed shell-startup env overrides (HOME, ZDOTDIR) that can execute attacker-controlled startup files before allowlist-evaluated command bodies.
Affected Packages / Versions
- Package:
openclaw(npm) - Affected:
<= 2026.2.21-2(latest published vulnerable version) - Planned patched version:
>= 2026.2.22
Technical Details
In affected versions:
- Env sanitization blocked many dangerous keys, but not startup-sensitive override keys (
HOME,ZDOTDIR) in host exec env paths. - Shell-wrapper analysis for allowlist mode models command bodies, but not shell startup side effects.
- Runtime execution used sanitized env, so attacker-provided startup-key overrides could run hidden startup payloads first.
Observed exploit vectors:
HOME+bash -lc+ malicious.bash_profileZDOTDIR+zsh -c+ malicious.zshenv
Fix Commit(s)
c2c7114ed39a547ab6276e1e933029b9530ee906
Release Process Note
patched_versions is pre-set to the planned next release (>= 2026.2.22). After the npm release is published, this advisory can be published directly.
OpenClaw thanks @tdjackey for reporting.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📦npm | openclaw | all versions | 2026.2.22npm install openclaw@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, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update openclaw to 2026.2.22 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-xgf2-vxv2-rrmg 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 Security's impact-aware SCA analyses which vulnerable code paths your application actually calls, so a match like GHSA-xgf2-vxv2-rrmg can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to GHSA-xgf2-vxv2-rrmg. 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-xgf2-vxv2-rrmg in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds GHSA-xgf2-vxv2-rrmg across npm dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.