GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF

Some internal command handlers require operator.approvals or operator.admin scopes. In affected releases, a scoped Gateway chat.send request delivered through an inherited external route could be evaluated as an external-channel command while still carrying the lower Gateway client scopes.

This issue affects scoped Gateway clients. It does not apply to shared-secret bearer HTTP compatibility endpoints, which are documented as full operator surfaces under OpenClaw's trust model.

Affected configurations

This affects deployments where a scoped Gateway caller with operator.write can use chat.send with delivery into a session that has an inherited external delivery route.

Patched Versions

The first stable patched version is 2026.5.18.

Mitigations

Upgrade to [email protected] or later. Before upgrading, avoid granting operator.write tokens to clients that can deliver commands into sessions with external routes unless those clients are trusted with admin-like command effects.

Commands that should have required operator.approvals or operator.admin could run with only operator.write in this routed context. Affected command families included approval resolution and selected administrative commands such as plugin, config, MCP, allowlist, and ACP mutations.

The application does not perform an authorization check before performing a sensitive operation. Typical impact: unauthorized access to restricted functionality or data.

GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF has a CVSS score of 8.8 (High). The vector is network-reachable, low privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (2026.5.18); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Kodem intelligence

1. What is GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF? GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF is a high-severity missing authorization vulnerability in openclaw (npm), affecting versions < 2026.5.18. It is fixed in 2026.5.18. The application does not perform an authorization check before performing a sensitive operation.
2. How severe is GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF? GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF has a CVSS score of 8.8 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
3. Which versions of openclaw are affected by GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF? openclaw (npm) versions < 2026.5.18 is affected.
4. Is there a fix for GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF? Yes. GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF is fixed in 2026.5.18. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
6. What actually determines whether GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
7. How do I fix GHSA-HW9R-H9MR-4JFF? Upgrade openclaw to 2026.5.18 or later.