AI security incident: OpenClaw: Command hijacking via unsafe PATH handling (bootstrapping + node-host PATH...

Incident date: February 18, 2026 | Published: February 25, 2026 | Source: GitHub Security Advisory | Classification confidence: 45%

This incident is part of the public archive and includes explicit AI-related signals from the cited source material. Review methodology.

Command hijacking via PATH handling **Discovered:** 2026-02-04 **Reporter:** @akhmittra ## Summary OpenClaw previously accepted untrusted PATH sources in limited situations. In affected versions, this could cause OpenClaw to resolve and execute an unintended binary ("command hijacking") when running host commands. This issue primarily matters when OpenClaw is relying on allowlist/safe-bin protections and expects PATH to be trustworthy. ## Affected Packages / Versions - Package: openclaw (npm) - Affected: = 2026.2.

Why This Is AI-Related

This page is treated as AI-specific because the source material references copilot, which places the issue inside an AI workflow, model, assistant, or supporting dependency rather than a generic software bulletin.

copilot

Affected Workflow

Review the AI product, dependency, and integration points mentioned in the source advisory before broadening remediation.

Likely Attack Path

The advisory indicates a security path that can affect AI applications, assistants, models, or connected automation workflows if the component is deployed.

Impact

The issue can create a path to command execution inside an AI-facing product, plugin, copilot, or supporting service runtime. Severity HIGH. Classification confidence 45%. Source channel GHSA.

Detection And Triage Signals

New security events tied to the affected component or advisory identifier
Changes in AI workflow behavior, access logs, or plugin execution after the advisory window
Evidence that the vulnerable version is active in environments that process sensitive data

Recommended Response

Identify every environment that runs the affected AI plugin, assistant, CLI, or supporting package.
Patch or isolate the vulnerable component and remove risky execution permissions while validation is in progress.
Review process execution, outbound connections, and file-write logs for signs of post-exploitation activity.

Compliance And Business Impact

Even when exploit details are still emerging, delayed triage can widen operational and compliance exposure around AI systems.

Sources

GHSA source

Want alerts like this in real time?

Get notified with incident context, likely impact, and response guidance.

Get Notified