Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
OpenClaw had a flaw in its command allowlist enforcement. A user with low privileges could craft input that made the shell run a command the allowlist should have blocked. The main business risk is unauthorized modification or disruption in environments where OpenClaw can run operational commands.
Executive priority
Treat as a high-priority patch for any OpenClaw environment that executes operational commands. Prioritize internet-accessible, shared, or automation-heavy deployments first because the flaw can undermine command approval controls.
Technical view
CVE-2026-28460 is a CWE-78 command injection allowlist bypass in OpenClaw system.run before 2026.2.22. Shell line-continuation behavior combined with command substitution can defeat approval boundaries. CVSS 7.1 reflects network reachability, low attack complexity, low privileges, high integrity impact, and limited availability impact.
Likely exposure
Likely exposed systems are OpenClaw deployments before 2026.2.22 where low-privileged users, automation, or agents can submit inputs reaching system.run. The source bundle does not identify affected CPEs or downstream packaged products.
Exploitation context
The bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or confirmed active exploitation. Exploitation requires some authenticated or low-privileged path into system.run input handling, then abuses shell parsing to bypass allowlist checks.
Researcher notes
The evidence supports command injection through shell parsing behavior, but the bundle does not include exploit-in-the-wild confirmation. The affected version statement is OpenClaw before 2026.2.22; CPE data is absent, so asset mapping may require repository or package inventory.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade OpenClaw to 2026.2.22 or later.
- Review the GitHub advisory and patch commit before deploying fixes.
- Restrict access to workflows that can invoke system.run.
- Monitor command execution logs for rejected or unusual allowlist boundary cases.
- If upgrade is delayed, follow vendor guidance for temporary controls.
Validation and detection
- Inventory OpenClaw versions across production and CI environments.
- Identify workflows, agents, or APIs that call system.run.
- Confirm patched code or fixed release is deployed.
- Run benign regression tests for allowlist enforcement edge cases.
- Review logs for suspicious failed approvals or unexpected command execution.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-78: Command execution behavior lookup
Command injection weaknesses can lead defenders to review execution techniques and command interpreter telemetry. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2026-28460 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 7.1 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:L
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
SSVC decision data
CVSS vector scores
2 official scoresWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:L2.84.2VulnCheckCVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N——VulnCheckVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 4.0 score
6MediumVector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
Base CVSS 3.1 score
7.1HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:L
Vulnerability timeline
Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.
- CVE reservedCVE Program
The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.
- CVE publishedCVE Program
The CVE record was published.
- CVE updatedCVE Program
The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.
ADP provider summaries
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- GitHub Security Advisory (GHSA-9868-vxmx-w862)CVE reference, VulnCheck · vendor-advisory
- Patch CommitCVE reference, VulnCheck · patch
- VulnCheck Advisory: OpenClaw < 2026.2.22 - Allowlist Bypass via Shell Line-Continuation Command Substitution in system.runCVE reference, VulnCheck · third-party-advisory
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')
Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.