OpenClaw: denial of service through large base64 media files allocating large buffers before limit checks

Summary

Base64-backed media inputs could be decoded into Buffers before enforcing decoded-size budgets. An attacker supplying oversized base64 payloads can force large allocations, causing memory pressure and denial of service.

Attack Scenario Notes

• Recommended deployments bind the gateway to loopback by default and require gateway auth for HTTP endpoints. In that configuration, this is best modeled as a local/authorized DoS.
• If an operator exposes the gateway to untrusted networks (or disables/weakens auth and rate limits), treat this as a higher-severity network DoS risk.

Affected Packages / Versions

• openclaw (npm): <= 2026.2.13
• clawdbot (npm): <= 2026.1.24-3

Fixed In

• openclaw (npm): 2026.2.14 (planned)
• clawdbot (npm): no patched release planned; migrate to openclaw

Fix Commit(s)

• 31791233d60495725fa012745dde8d6ee69e9595

Credits

Thanks @vincentkoc for reporting.