Arbitrary file writes via unchecked archive paths
Published Mar 5, 2026 · Updated Mar 5, 2026
Path traversal in OpenClaw 2026.1.16-2 through 2026.2.13 allows local users to write arbitrary files through crafted archives. Installation flows pass archive entries containing parent-directory or absolute paths to extraction without rejecting paths that resolve outside the destination. Exploitation requires a user to run a skills, hooks, plugins, or signal installation command on an untrusted local file or download URL, enabling writes with that user's permissions and resulting persistence or code execution.
Summary
What happened
Path traversal in OpenClaw 2026.1.16-2 through 2026.2.13 allows local users to write arbitrary files through crafted archives. Installation flows pass archive entries containing parent-directory or absolute paths to extraction without rejecting paths that resolve outside the destination. Exploitation requires a user to run a skills, hooks, plugins, or signal installation command on an untrusted local file or download URL, enabling writes with that user's permissions and resulting persistence or code execution.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-28486
- Published
- Mar 5, 2026
- Updated
- Mar 5, 2026
- Vendor
- OpenClaw Foundation
- Product
- OpenClaw
- Classifications
- CWE-22, T1204.002
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Mar 5, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Mar 5, 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.
- Affected versionversion=2026.1.16-2 <2026.2.14
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
- GitHub issue #9512 reproduction stepsproof of concept · unverified
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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