Which versions of Openclaw are affected by CVE-2026-32973?

OpenClaw versions prior to 2026.3.11 contain a critical execution allowlist bypass that permits unauthenticated remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands on affected systems.. A patch is available.

How to fix or mitigate CVE-2026-32973?

Within 24 hours: Identify all systems running OpenClaw versions prior to 2026.3.11 using inventory and asset management tools. Within 7 days: Upgrade all affected OpenClaw instances to version 2026.3.11 or later per vendor patch release. Within 30 days: Conduct security assessment of affected systems to verify no unauthorized command execution occurred during exposure window; review and strengthen compensating network controls such as network segmentation and access restrictions to OpenClaw services.

Openclaw CVE-2026-32973

Q: What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-32973?

CVE-2026-32973 has a CVSS 4.0 base score of 8.8 (High). CVSS vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X. EPSS exploitation probability: 0.1%.

EUVD-2026-17011 HIGH

Permissive Regular Expression (CWE-625)

2026-03-29 VulnCheck

Authentication Bypass Openclaw

8.8

CVSS 4.0 · NVD

Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY

8.8 HIGH

CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X

Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.

CVSS VectorNVD

CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X

Attack Vector

Network

Attack Complexity

Low

Privileges Required

None

User Interaction

None

Scope

Lifecycle Timeline

Analysis Updated

Apr 16, 2026 - 06:11 EUVD-patch-fix

executive_summary

Re-analysis Queued

Apr 16, 2026 - 05:29 backfill_euvd_patch

patch_released

Patch available

Apr 16, 2026 - 05:29 EUVD

2026.3.11

EUVD ID Assigned

Mar 29, 2026 - 13:15 euvd

EUVD-2026-17011

Analysis Generated

Mar 29, 2026 - 13:15 vuln.today

CVE Published

Mar 29, 2026 - 12:44 nvd

HIGH 8.8

Blast Radius

ecosystem impact

† from your stack dependencies † transitive graph · vuln.today resolves 4-path depth

3 npm packages depend on openclaw (3 direct, 0 indirect)

Ecosystem-wide dependent count for version 2026.3.11.

DescriptionCVE.org

OpenClaw before 2026.3.11 contains an exec allowlist bypass vulnerability where matchesExecAllowlistPattern improperly normalizes patterns with lowercasing and glob matching that overmatches on POSIX paths. Attackers can exploit the ? wildcard matching across path segments to execute commands or paths not intended by operators.

AnalysisAI

Execution allowlist bypass in OpenClaw (versions prior to 2026.3.11) enables unauthenticated remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands by exploiting improper pattern normalization in matchesExecAllowlistPattern. The vulnerability stems from lowercasing and overly permissive glob matching logic that incorrectly allows the ? wildcard to match across POSIX path segments, circumventing intended security restrictions. No public exploit identified at time of analysis, though CVSS 8.8 severity reflects network-accessible attack vector with no authentication required and high integrity/availability impact.

Technical ContextAI

This vulnerability affects OpenClaw's command execution filtering mechanism, specifically the matchesExecAllowlistPattern function responsible for validating commands against configured allowlists. The root cause is CWE-625 (Permissive Regular Expression), where the implementation performs case normalization via lowercasing combined with glob pattern matching that behaves incorrectly on POSIX filesystem paths. The ? wildcard metacharacter, intended to match single characters within a path component, instead matches across directory separators (forward slashes), enabling path traversal-style bypasses of the allowlist. For example, a pattern intended to match /usr/bin/safe_cmd could be bypassed by crafting inputs like /usr?bin/malicious_cmd or /usr/b?n/dangerous_tool, where ? matches the / separator. This normalization flaw effectively neutralizes the security control, allowing operators' intended restrictions to be circumvented through carefully crafted command strings that exploit the pattern matching logic's overly permissive behavior.

RemediationAI

Vendor-released patch: OpenClaw version 2026.3.11 addresses this vulnerability through corrected pattern matching logic in matchesExecAllowlistPattern. Organizations should upgrade all OpenClaw instances to version 2026.3.11 or later immediately, prioritizing internet-facing and multi-tenant deployments. Obtain the patched release from the official OpenClaw repository and follow standard change management procedures, testing in non-production environments before production rollout. Consult the GitHub security advisory at https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-f8r2-vg7x-gh8m for detailed remediation guidance and any vendor-recommended configuration changes. If immediate patching is not feasible, implement compensating controls such as restricting network access to OpenClaw instances via firewall rules, disabling exec allowlist features if not operationally required, implementing additional input validation layers before commands reach OpenClaw, and enhancing monitoring for anomalous command execution patterns. Review existing allowlist configurations to identify overly permissive patterns containing ? wildcards and tighten rules where possible. No workarounds fully mitigate the vulnerability; patching remains the only complete remediation.