GHSA-796m-2973-wc5q OpenClaw has exec allowlist/safeBins policy-runtime mismatch via env -S wrapper interpretation

• npm openclaw: < 2026.2.23 → fixed in 2026.2.23

Summary `tools.exec` allowlist/safe-bins evaluation could diverge from runtime execution for wrapper commands using GNU `env -S/--split-string` semantics. This allowed policy checks to treat a command as a benign safe-bin invocation while runtime executed a different payload. Affected Packages / Versions • Package: `openclaw` (npm) • Vulnerable versions: `<= 2026.2.22-2` (latest currently published npm version) • Patched version (released): `2026.2.23` Impact An attacker able to influence tool command text (for example via untrusted prompt/content injection reaching an exec-capable flow) could bypass allowlist/safe-bins intent and execute unexpected commands. Technical Details Root cause was policy/runtime interpretation mismatch for dispatch wrappers: • analysis resolved an effective executable from wrapper-unwrapped argv, • execution could still run original wrapper argv semantics, • safe-bin short-flag handling also allowed unknown short options in clusters. Remediation The fix hardens exec approvals to fail closed and enforce analysis/runtime parity: • introduce wrapper execution planning with semantic-wrapper blocking, • carry planned `effectiveArgv` + `policyBlocked` metadata through resolution, • evaluate allowlist/safe-bins against planned argv, • enforce canonical rebuilt shell command from planned argv for allowlist auto-paths, • use planned argv for node-host/mac exec-host invocation paths, • reject unknown short safe-bin flags, • add regression tests for semantic `env` wrappers and parity fixtures. Fix Commit(s) • `a1c4bf07c6baad3ef87a0e710fe9aef127b1f606` Release Process Note `patched_versions` is pre-set to the released version (`2026.2.23`). Patched in `2026.2.23` and published. OpenClaw thanks @jiseoung for reporting.