CVE-2026-22177

Local code execution via unfiltered service environment

Published Mar 18, 2026 · Updated Mar 18, 2026

Environment variable injection in OpenClaw before 2026.2.21 allows local users to execute code during Gateway startup. collectConfigEnvVars accepts process-control keys from config env.vars, and buildGatewayInstallPlan merges them into the daemon environment without filtering. Exploitation requires permission to alter OpenClaw configuration; injected NODE_OPTIONS, LD_, or DYLD_ values execute in the Gateway service context.

CVSS severity6.9
Medium
EPSS probability0.37%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Environment variable injection in OpenClaw before 2026.2.21 allows local users to execute code during Gateway startup. collectConfigEnvVars accepts process-control keys from config env.vars, and buildGatewayInstallPlan merges them into the daemon environment without filtering. Exploitation requires permission to alter OpenClaw configuration; injected NODE_OPTIONS, LD_, or DYLD_ values execute in the Gateway service context.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-22177
Published
Mar 18, 2026
Updated
Mar 18, 2026
Vendor
OpenClaw Foundation
Product
OpenClaw
Classifications
CWE-15, T1574.006
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Mar 18, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Mar 18, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=0 <2026.2.21

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

OpenClaw Foundation · OpenClawversion=0 <2026.2.21

Published CVSS scores

6.1VulnCheckCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:L
6.9VulnCheckCVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
8.8NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

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No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-15External Control of System or Configuration Setting
T1574.006Dynamic Linker Hijacking

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

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Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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