Junglewise Threat Intelligence

CVE-2026-43570: OpenClaw symlink traversal in marketplace repository paths

CVE-2026-43570 · Severity: low · CVSS 3.1 · Published 2026-05-05

Technologies: Openclaw. Vendors: Openclaw.

Executive brief

OpenClaw is a popular automation and AI orchestration platform that manages plugin repositories through a marketplace system. A symlink traversal flaw in the marketplace's path handling allows attackers to craft malicious plugin paths that escape the repository sandbox and access arbitrary files on the system. This could enable unauthorized file disclosure or system compromise if an attacker tricks a user into installing a crafted marketplace plugin.

Technical details

The vulnerability is a path traversal flaw (CWE-61) in OpenClaw's remote marketplace repository path handling. The affected component processes plugin repository paths from the marketplace without properly validating or canonicalizing them, allowing symlink-based escape from the expected repository root. An attacker can exploit this by providing a crafted symlink path that, when followed, resolves to a location outside the intended directory structure. The fix canonicalizes remote plugin paths using real path resolution and enforces containment checks before accepting marketplace path sources. The vulnerability was addressed in version 2026.4.5 through commits that implement canonical path validation. User interaction or network access to the marketplace may be required to trigger the vulnerability.

Affected products

  • openclaw openclaw >=2026.3.22, <2026.4.5

Timeline

  • 2026-05-05: disclosed: Vulnerability published on OSV/GitHub
  • 2026-04-04: patched: Fix merged in commit b1dd3ded3589f6fa60ab85b3930a82d538edaeae and 94b0062e90467e1582b47cc971f308457c537f3a
  • 2026-05-08: advisory: GitHub security advisory reviewed

References

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