CVE-2026-32056 is an allowlist bypass in OpenClaw system.run, scored 7.5 by NVD. The environment cleanup allowed HOME and ZDOTDIR overrides, so shell startup files could run before an approved command. Upgrade OpenClaw to 2026.2.22 or later. Checks and steps follow below.
What's affected
OpenClaw 2026.2.21-2 and earlier. The patched version is 2026.2.22.
It matters where system.run uses an allowlist of approved commands. The check looked at the command body, not at what the shell does before it runs the body.
How to check if you're exposed
OpenClaw is distributed on npm, so read the installed version.
npm ls openclaw
npm ls -g openclaw
OpenClaw release numbers are date based, so compare the version against the fixed release named above. If you run it in a container, check the image you deploy and rebuild it after updating.
What to do now
- Upgrade OpenClaw to 2026.2.22 or later.
- Review which hosts run system.run in allowlist mode and who can reach them.
- Check for unexpected startup files such as .bash_profile or .zshenv in directories the service can write to.
- Run the service as a low privilege user.
Why it matters
The record lists CWE-78, OS command injection. Shells read startup files before they run a command, and the HOME and ZDOTDIR variables tell them where to look. The sanitizer blocked many dangerous variables but not these two, so a caller could point the shell at files it controlled.
Allowlists that only model the command text miss side effects like this. The advisory names the shell startup paths for bash login shells and zsh as the observed vectors. The fix sanitizes those overrides.
The record does not flag this CVE as listed in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, and no advisory I read says it is exploited in the wild. Treat it as a patch to schedule promptly, not a fire drill, unless your own logs say otherwise.
Quick check
Why do HOME and ZDOTDIR matter?
They decide which startup files a shell loads. If a caller sets them, the shell may run that caller's files first.
Sources
Last reviewed: 19 October 2026.
