CVE-2026-22171
Published: 18 March 2026
Summary
CVE-2026-22171 is a high-severity Path Traversal (CWE-22) vulnerability in Openclaw Openclaw. Its CVSS base score is 8.2 (High).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked at the 23.4th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified are NIST 800-53 SI-10 (Information Input Validation) and SI-2 (Flaw Remediation).
Threat & Defense at a Glance
Threat & Defense Details
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5)AI
Directly validates untrusted Feishu media keys prior to interpolation into temporary file paths, preventing path traversal exploitation.
Remediates the path traversal flaw in OpenClaw by identifying, reporting, and applying patches such as those in version 2026.2.19.
Limits the OpenClaw process to least privilege, restricting the scope and impact of arbitrary file writes via path traversal.
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise TechniquesAI
Why these techniques?
Path traversal in public-facing OpenClaw media handler directly enables remote unauthenticated arbitrary file write via exploitation of the application.
NVD Description
OpenClaw versions prior to 2026.2.19 contain a path traversal vulnerability in the Feishu media download flow where untrusted media keys are interpolated directly into temporary file paths in extensions/feishu/src/media.ts. An attacker who can control Feishu media key values returned to…
more
the client can use traversal segments to escape os.tmpdir() and write arbitrary files within the OpenClaw process permissions.
Deeper analysisAI
CVE-2026-22171, published on 2026-03-18, is a path traversal vulnerability (CWE-22) in OpenClaw versions prior to 2026.2.19. The flaw exists in the Feishu media download flow within the file extensions/feishu/src/media.ts, where untrusted media keys provided by Feishu are directly interpolated into temporary file paths based on os.tmpdir().
A remote, unauthenticated attacker (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N) who can control Feishu media key values returned to the client can exploit this vulnerability by injecting traversal segments, such as "../", to escape the intended temporary directory. This allows the attacker to write arbitrary files within the permissions of the OpenClaw process, resulting in high confidentiality impact (C:H), low integrity impact (I:L), and no availability impact (A:N). The CVSS v3.1 base score is 8.2 with unchanged scope (S:U).
Mitigation is addressed in OpenClaw commits c821099157a9767d4df208c6b12f214946507871, cdb00fe2428000e7a08f9b7848784a0049176705, and ec232a9e2dff60f0e3d7e827a7c868db5254473f, with users advised to upgrade to version 2026.2.19 or later. Further details are provided in the GitHub security advisory at GHSA-vj3g-5px3-gr46 and the VulnCheck advisory at https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-path-traversal-in-feishu-media-temporary-file-naming.
Details
- CWE(s)