GHSA-4685-c5cp-vp95 — low GitHub Advisory (CVE-2026-31996) in npm/openclaw

Description

Summary

tools.exec.safeBins could be bypassed for filesystem access when sort output flags (-o / --output) or recursive grep flags were allowed through safe-bin execution paths.

Affected Packages / Versions

Package: openclaw (npm)
Affected versions: <= 2026.2.17
Patched versions: >= 2026.2.19
Latest published version at triage time: 2026.2.17

Impact

In deployments that enabled tools.exec.safeBins, an attacker with access to command execution flows could turn intended stdin-only safe-bin usage into file writes (sort -o) or recursive file reads (grep -R).

Fix Commit(s)

2c05cbb43e48ebad03626d3125746fb1b9a8520f

Found using MCPwner

Thanks @nedlir for reporting.

Basic information

Type: reviewed
Severity: low
Advisory on GitHub: Open advisory ↗
Repository advisory: Open repository advisory ↗
Source code: Browse source ↗
Published (advisory): 2026-02-19 22:06:00 UTC
Updated: 2026-03-19 21:25:18 UTC
GitHub reviewed: 2026-02-19 22:06:00 UTC

Score	Percentile
0.01%	2.24%

CVSS Scores

Base score	Version	Severity	Vector
3.6	3.1	—	`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N` Click to expand Attack vector (AV:L) They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by. Attack complexity (AC:H) Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work. Privileges required (PR:L) A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin. User interaction (UI:N) Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping. Scope (S:U) Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems. Confidentiality (C:L) Some sensitive info could get out, but not a total data dump. Integrity (I:L) Attackers could change some data, but it’s limited—not everything goes. Availability (A:N) Service keeps running; no real outage angle.

Identifiers

Type	Value
GHSA	GHSA-4685-c5cp-vp95 ↗
CVE	CVE-2026-31996 ↗

CWEs

CWE id	Name
CWE-78	Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')
CWE-184	Incomplete List of Disallowed Inputs

Credits

nedlir (reporter)

Affected packages (1)

Vulnerable version ranges and first patched releases as published by GitHub.

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	First patched	Vulnerable functions
npm	openclaw	<= 2026.2.17	2026.2.19	—

OpenClaw safeBins stdin-only bypass via sort output and recursive grep flags