Executive brief
OpenClaw is a Node.js plugin system that manages HTTP API routes for applications. An attacker can bypass authentication checks on protected `/api/channels` routes by using URL-encoded path variations (such as multi-encoded slashes), allowing unauthorized access to sensitive channel operations. Deployments relying on gateway authentication for these routes are vulnerable.
Technical details
This is an authentication bypass vulnerability (CWE-288) caused by a canonicalization depth mismatch between the plugin route authentication classifier and the actual path canonicalization handler. Attackers can craft alternate encoded paths (e.g., multi-encoded %2f for slashes) that evade auth-check prefix matching while still resolving to the protected `/api/channels/*` routes in the plugin handler. The vulnerability affects versions up to 2026.3.1 when plugin HTTP routes are exposed and protected only by gateway auth. Version 2026.3.2 and later fix this by implementing bounded-fixpoint path canonicalization, requiring explicit auth contracts, enforcing route ownership guards, and using shared webhook lifecycle registration to prevent route conflicts.
Affected products
- OpenClaw openclaw <=2026.3.1
Timeline
- 2026-03-03: disclosed
- 2026-03-02: patched: Version 2026.3.2 released with fixes