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Is OpenClaw Safe? A Complete Security Guide for 2026

By agentclw Team·
securitysafetyguide

The Short Answer

OpenClaw itself is open-source, well-audited, and generally safe to run. The real risks come from third-party skills — and that is where you need to be careful.

How OpenClaw's Security Model Works

OpenClaw runs on your local machine with the permissions you grant it. At its core, it is a framework that:

  1. Takes instructions (via chat, CLI, or API)
  2. Processes them through an LLM
  3. Executes actions via skills and tools

The framework itself has a solid permission model. When you run claw init, you configure exactly what OpenClaw can access: file system paths, network access, shell execution, and more.

The Skills Marketplace Problem

Here is where things get complicated. The ClawHub marketplace hosts over 4,000 skills created by the community. Our research found that approximately 11.3% of marketplace skills exhibit concerning behavior:

  • Excessive permission requests — Skills asking for more access than they need
  • Obfuscated code — Source code that is intentionally hard to read
  • Data exfiltration patterns — Skills that send data to external servers
  • Supply chain risks — Dependencies with known vulnerabilities

This does not mean 11.3% are outright malicious, but they warrant caution.

Practical Security Steps

1. Use Vetted Skills

Only install skills from trusted sources. Our Skills Directory includes only security-vetted skills with transparent ratings.

2. Review Permissions

Before installing any skill, check what permissions it requests:

claw info <skill-name> --permissions

If a file organizer asks for network access, that is a red flag.

3. Restrict File System Access

Limit OpenClaw to specific directories rather than giving it full disk access:

# ~/.config/openclaw/config.yaml
permissions:
  filesystem:
    read:
      - ~/Documents
      - ~/Projects
    write:
      - ~/Documents/openclaw-output

4. Enable Audit Logging

Turn on audit logging to track what OpenClaw does:

audit:
  enabled: true
  log_path: ~/.config/openclaw/audit.log
  log_level: detailed

5. Use Network Restrictions

Control which domains OpenClaw and its skills can access:

permissions:
  network:
    allowed_domains:
      - api.openai.com
      - api.anthropic.com
      - github.com

6. Keep OpenClaw Updated

Security patches are released regularly. Update with:

claw update

Known Risk Areas

LLM Prompt Injection

Like all LLM-based tools, OpenClaw is susceptible to prompt injection attacks. A malicious document could contain hidden instructions that the AI executes. Mitigate this by:

  • Limiting file system access
  • Reviewing actions before execution (enable confirmation mode)
  • Not giving OpenClaw access to sensitive credentials

Skill Supply Chain Attacks

A popular skill could be compromised in an update. Protect yourself by:

  • Pinning skill versions
  • Reviewing changelogs before updating
  • Using our curated directory instead of the raw marketplace

Data Privacy

OpenClaw sends your prompts to an LLM provider. Be mindful of what data you process through it, especially if you use a cloud-based model. For sensitive data, consider running a local model via Ollama.

Our Recommendation

OpenClaw is a powerful tool that is safe to use when configured properly. The key is treating it like any software that runs with elevated permissions: be deliberate about what you grant access to, use vetted skills, and keep everything updated.

If you want help configuring OpenClaw securely, check out our Setup Service — security hardening is included in every plan.