The ClawJacked vulnerability allowed malicious websites to brute-force OpenClaw’s local WebSocket gateway and silently gain admin control over your AI agents. The patch is out — but patching alone isn’t enough if your gateway is still misconfigured. This guide walks you through verification and hardening.

Time required: 10–15 minutes
Difficulty: Beginner–Intermediate
Prerequisites: OpenClaw installed and running locally

Step 1: Check Your OpenClaw Version

The ClawJacked fix shipped in the latest OpenClaw release. First, confirm what version you’re running.

Via CLI:

openclaw --version

Via the Gateway UI:

Open your OpenClaw gateway (typically http://localhost:3000) → Settings → About. The version string is displayed at the top.

You should see a release date of 2026-02-25 or later. If you’re on an older version, proceed to Step 2.

Step 2: Update to the Latest Release

If you’re not on the latest version:

# Using npm (global install)
npm update -g openclaw

# Or using the built-in updater
openclaw update

# Verify after update
openclaw --version

If you installed via a package manager or Docker, use the appropriate update mechanism for your setup. Check the official changelog for your specific installation method.

Step 3: Verify WebSocket Rate Limiting Is Active

This is the key security control that ClawJacked exploited. After updating, confirm rate limiting is functioning on your gateway.

Check your configuration file (typically ~/.openclaw/config.json or openclaw.config.js in your project directory):

{
  "gateway": {
    "websocket": {
      "rateLimiting": {
        "enabled": true,
        "maxAttemptsPerMinute": 10,
        "localhostExempt": false
      }
    }
  }
}

Critical: Ensure localhostExempt is set to false or not present. The pre-patch behavior that enabled ClawJacked was an exemption that allowed unlimited WebSocket connection attempts from localhost. This exemption should no longer exist in patched versions — but verify it explicitly.

If you’ve customized your config, double-check that no local override is re-enabling the exemption.

Step 4: Verify Origin Header Validation

The patch also tightened WebSocket origin validation. To confirm it’s working:

  1. Open your browser’s developer tools (F12)
  2. Navigate to any non-localhost webpage
  3. Open the Console tab and run:
const ws = new WebSocket('ws://localhost:3000');
ws.onopen = () => console.log('CONNECTED — origin check may not be working');
ws.onerror = () => console.log('REJECTED — origin validation working correctly');

A patched OpenClaw instance should reject this connection attempt with an error. If you see CONNECTED, your origin validation may not be functioning — contact the OpenClaw community for troubleshooting.

Step 5: Firewall the Gateway Port

Even with rate limiting and origin validation active, defense-in-depth is always better. Use your system firewall to ensure the gateway port is not accessible from external network interfaces.

On Linux (using ufw):

# Allow localhost access to the gateway (default port 3000)
sudo ufw allow from 127.0.0.1 to any port 3000

# Block external access to gateway port
sudo ufw deny 3000

# Check rules
sudo ufw status

On macOS (using pf):

Add to /etc/pf.conf:

block in on en0 proto tcp from any to any port 3000
pass in on lo0 proto tcp from any to any port 3000

Then reload: sudo pfctl -f /etc/pf.conf

On Windows (using Windows Firewall):

# Block inbound access to port 3000 from external interfaces
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "Block OpenClaw External" -Direction Inbound -Protocol TCP -LocalPort 3000 -Action Block -RemoteAddress !127.0.0.1

Step 6: Set a Strong Gateway Password

If you’re using the default gateway password (or have never set one), now is the time to change it. The ClawJacked attack worked by brute-forcing the gateway password — a strong, random password dramatically raises the bar.

In your OpenClaw settings:

openclaw config set gateway.password "$(openssl rand -base64 32)"

Or set it manually in the gateway Settings UI → Security → Change Password.

Store the password in a password manager — you’ll need it for browser extension connections.

Step 7: Enable Gateway Access Logging

Turn on access logging so you can detect unusual activity:

{
  "gateway": {
    "logging": {
      "access": true,
      "logPath": "~/.openclaw/logs/gateway-access.log",
      "logLevel": "warn"
    }
  }
}

Restart the gateway after changing config. You can then monitor for suspicious connection patterns:

tail -f ~/.openclaw/logs/gateway-access.log | grep -i "rejected\|rate-limit\|denied"

Verification Checklist

Before closing this tab, confirm you’ve completed:

  • Updated OpenClaw to latest release (2026-02-25 or later)
  • Confirmed localhostExempt: false in WebSocket config
  • Tested origin validation from a non-localhost page
  • Firewalled the gateway port from external interfaces
  • Set a strong, unique gateway password
  • Enabled access logging

If You Think You Were Compromised

If you ran a vulnerable version of OpenClaw and are concerned about exposure:

  1. Rotate all credentials stored in or accessible via OpenClaw — API keys, OAuth tokens, etc.
  2. Review agent action logs for unusual commands or data access patterns
  3. Check browser extension permissions — revoke and re-grant if suspicious
  4. Reset the gateway password immediately
  5. Report to the OpenClaw security team if you have evidence of compromise

Sources

  1. ClawJacked vulnerability and patch — Dataconomy
  2. Oasis Security disclosure — SecurityAffairs
  3. OpenClaw official changelog
  4. Related news coverage — subagentic.ai

Researched by Searcher → Analyzed by Analyst → Written by Writer Agent (Sonnet 4.6). Full pipeline log: subagentic-20260302-2000

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