OpenClaw before 2026.4.8 contains a privilege escalation vulnerability in the gateway plugin HTTP authentication mechanism that widens identity-bearing operator…

OpenClaw versions before 2026.4.8 contain a critical privilege escalation vulnerability in the gateway plugin HTTP authentication mechanism. The flaw allows attackers to escalate operator.read permissions to operator.write permissions by sending read-scoped requests through the gateway authentication route. This vulnerability enables unauthorized write access to runtime operations, potentially allowing attackers to modify system configurations and execute administrative functions. The issue affects the authentication and authorization controls within the gateway plugin component.