Executive brief
OpenClaw is a gateway/authentication library used to manage access control and operator permissions in applications. A flaw in its trusted-proxy authentication mode allows an authenticated attacker to escalate privileges to administrator level by retaining operator scopes that should have been cleared, enabling unauthorized administrative actions.
Technical details
The vulnerability is an incorrect authorization issue (CWE-863) in OpenClaw's trusted-proxy authentication handler. The scope-clearing mechanism was incomplete: while it clears scopes for Control-UI clients, it fails to do so for non-Control-UI clients, allowing self-declared operator scopes to persist on identity-bearing auth paths. An attacker with legitimate authentication credentials can exploit this to escalate to operator.admin privileges. The attack requires network access and prior authentication. The fix is available in version 2026.3.31 and later.
Affected products
- OpenClaw OpenClaw <=2026.3.28
Timeline
- 2026-04-03: disclosed
- 2026-03-31: patched: Fixed in v2026.3.31
- 2026-03-30: other: Fix commit 8b88b92