ClawVitals

Security health check for self-hosted OpenClaw installations. Evaluates 6 scored stable controls and 6 experimental controls, gives your setup a RAG band, and tells you exactly what to fix.

This skill is stateless and does not store scan history. The skill itself makes no network calls. Note: openclaw update status may cause the OpenClaw CLI to contact its update registry — this is OpenClaw's own behaviour, not initiated by this skill.

This skill performs point-in-time checks only. Scan history, recurring monitoring, and the clawvitals.io/dashboard are part of the ClawVitals plugin — see clawvitals.io/plugin.

Commands

Send these as messages in your OpenClaw messaging surface (Slack, Signal, Telegram, etc.):

run clawvitals              → run a security scan
show clawvitals details     → full report with remediation steps

How to run a scan

When the user says "run clawvitals" or similar, execute ALL of the following commands and collect their full output before evaluating anything.

Only report findings that are directly supported by the collected command output. Do not infer, guess, or invent checks that are not explicitly covered below. If a check cannot be evaluated reliably, report it as ➖ N/A rather than guessing.

Do not reproduce raw CLI output in your response. Extract only the specific fields needed to evaluate each control. Never display API keys, tokens, credentials, secrets, or sensitive values that may appear in command output.

If any command fails or returns unparseable output: skip all controls that depend on that source, note the failure in the report, and continue with the remaining controls. Do not abort the scan.

Step 1 — Collect data

Security audit:

openclaw security audit --json

Returns JSON with findings[]. Each finding has checkId, severity, title, detail, and optionally remediation.

Health check:

openclaw health --json

Returns JSON with channels{}. Each channel has configured (boolean), probe.ok (boolean), probe.error (string), and for iMessage specifically: cliPath (string or null).

Version:

openclaw --version

Returns a string like OpenClaw 2026.3.13 (61d171a). Extract the version number (e.g. 2026.3.13). Note: OpenClaw uses date-based versioning in YYYY.M.D format — the second segment is the month, not a semver minor.

Update status:

openclaw update status --json

Returns JSON with availability.hasRegistryUpdate (boolean) and update.registry.latestVersion (string or null).

Node version:

node --version

Returns a string like v22.22.1. Extract the major version number.

Step 2 — Evaluate stable controls (scored)

These 6 controls contribute to the score. Each result is PASS, FAIL, or ➖ N/A (if the required data could not be collected).

NC-OC-003 | High | No ineffective denyCommands entries

• PASS if: findings[] does NOT contain checkId = "gateway.nodes.deny_commands_ineffective"
• FAIL if: findings[] DOES contain checkId = "gateway.nodes.deny_commands_ineffective"
• N/A if: security audit failed or returned unparseable output
• When FAIL, show the user:

  Your gateway.nodes.denyCommands list contains command names that don't match any real OpenClaw commands — those entries do nothing. Check the detail field in the finding for the specific unrecognised names and replace them with valid command IDs. Full fix guide: clawvitals.io/docs/nc-oc-003

NC-OC-004 | Critical | No open (unauthenticated) groups

• PASS if: findings[] does NOT contain checkId = "security.exposure.open_groups_with_elevated" AND does NOT contain checkId = "security.exposure.open_groups_with_runtime_or_fs"
• FAIL if: either of those checkIds is present
• N/A if: security audit failed
• When FAIL, show the user:

  One or more messaging groups is open (no allowlist) and has elevated or runtime tools accessible. Any group member can trigger high-impact commands. Set groupPolicy="allowlist" for those groups and restrict which tools are available in group contexts. Full fix guide: clawvitals.io/docs/nc-oc-004

NC-OC-008 | Medium | All configured channels healthy

• Evaluate each channel in channels.*:
  • iMessage specifically: if channels.imessage.cliPath = null, iMessage is not set up — exclude it from evaluation (do not FAIL or NOTE). If channels.imessage.cliPath is a non-null string but probe.ok = false, report as a NOTE (not a FAIL): "iMessage is configured but the probe failed. iMessage requires macOS Full Disk Access — grant it in System Settings > Privacy & Security if you want to use iMessage."
  • All other channels: FAIL if configured = true AND probe.ok = false
• PASS if: no other configured channels have probe.ok = false
• N/A if: health check failed
• When FAIL (non-iMessage channel), show the user:

  One or more channels failed their health probe. Check the probe.error field in the health output for the specific error and verify the channel's credentials and connectivity. Full fix guide: clawvitals.io/docs/nc-oc-008

NC-AUTH-001 | High | Reverse proxy trust configured

• PASS if: findings[] does NOT contain checkId = "gateway.trusted_proxies_missing"
• FAIL if: findings[] DOES contain checkId = "gateway.trusted_proxies_missing"
• N/A if: security audit failed
• When FAIL, show the user:

  gateway.trustedProxies is empty. If you expose the OpenClaw Control UI through a reverse proxy (nginx, Caddy, Cloudflare, etc.), set gateway.trustedProxies to your proxy's IP addresses so client IP checks cannot be spoofed. If the Control UI is strictly local-only with no reverse proxy, this finding has low practical risk — but set gateway.trustedProxies: [] explicitly to document the intent. Full fix guide: clawvitals.io/docs/nc-auth-001

NC-VERS-001 | Medium | OpenClaw not behind latest release

• PASS if: availability.hasRegistryUpdate = false
• FAIL if: availability.hasRegistryUpdate = true
• N/A if: update status failed or hasRegistryUpdate is not present
• When FAIL, show the user:

  A newer version of OpenClaw is available. Run openclaw update to upgrade. Staying current ensures you have the latest security fixes. Full fix guide: clawvitals.io/docs/nc-vers-001

NC-VERS-002 | Medium | OpenClaw not more than 2 minor versions behind

• Note: OpenClaw uses date-based versioning YYYY.M.D. The second segment is the month (1–12), not a semver minor. This control measures how many months behind the installed version is.
• Prerequisite: installed version must be parseable as YYYY.M.D AND update.registry.latestVersion must be a non-null string. If either is missing or unparseable, report as ➖ N/A.
• Compute: diff = (latestYear - currentYear) * 12 + (latestMonth - currentMonth)
• PASS if: diff ≤ 2
• FAIL if: diff > 2
• N/A if: version data unavailable (see prerequisite)
• When FAIL, show the user:

  Your OpenClaw installation is more than 2 months behind the latest release. Run openclaw update to upgrade. Full fix guide: clawvitals.io/docs/nc-vers-002

Step 3 — Evaluate experimental controls (not scored)

These are reported separately. They never affect the score. Show only controls that have a NOTE — skip those that PASS.

NC-OC-002 | High (experimental) | Sandbox mode appropriate for deployment

• NOTE if: findings[] contains checkId = "security.trust_model.multi_user_heuristic" Show: "Multi-user signals detected on this installation. If multiple people access this OpenClaw instance, review sandbox settings to ensure trust boundaries are appropriate."
• PASS if: that checkId is absent

NC-OC-005 | Info (experimental) | Elevated tools usage noted

• Find the finding with checkId = "summary.attack_surface". Check if its detail field contains tools.elevated: enabled.
• NOTE if: enabled Show: "Elevated tools are active on this installation. Ensure this is intentional and that access is restricted to trusted users."
• PASS if: not present or disabled

NC-OC-006 | High (experimental) | Workspace file access scoped

• NOTE if: findings[] contains checkId = "security.trust_model.multi_user_heuristic" AND its detail field mentions fs.workspaceOnly=false Show: "File system access is not scoped to the workspace. In a multi-user context, consider setting tools.fs.workspaceOnly=true."
• PASS if: not present or workspaceOnly is not mentioned

NC-OC-007 | Medium (experimental) | Dependency integrity verifiable

• Check: update.deps.status in the update status output
• NOTE if: deps.status is a known failure value (e.g. "error", "mismatch") Show: "Dependency integrity check returned an unexpected status. Run openclaw update and check for any dependency errors."
• PASS/SKIP if: deps.status = "unknown" — treat as N/A (common on standard installs; do not flag as a finding)
• PASS if: deps.status = "ok" or similar success value

NC-VERS-004 | Medium (experimental) | Node.js within LTS support window

• Extract major version from node --version (e.g. v22.22.1 → 22)
• For this version of ClawVitals, supported LTS majors are: 20, 22 (even-numbered majors ≥ 20)
• PASS if: major is 20 or 22
• NOTE if: major is odd, or below 20, or above 22 Show: "Node.js {version} is not on an active LTS release. Upgrade to Node.js 20 or 22 for long-term support."
• N/A if: node --version failed

NC-VERS-005 | Low (experimental) | No deprecated API usage

• Check findings[] for any entry whose checkId contains the substring "deprecat"
• NOTE if: any found — show the title and detail from that finding verbatim
• PASS if: none found

Step 4 — Calculate score

Start at 100. Apply deductions only for FAIL results on stable controls. Controls marked ➖ N/A are excluded from the calculation.

Minimum score: 0.

Bands:

• 🟢 Green: 90–100 — no urgent action
• 🟡 Amber: 70–89 — review recommended
• 🔴 Red: 0–69 — immediate action required

Score is calculated based only on evaluated controls. Controls marked ➖ N/A are excluded from the calculation. If multiple controls are N/A, the score may be less representative of the full security posture.

Step 5 — Format and deliver

Summary format:

ClawVitals · OpenClaw {version}
{band emoji} {band} — {score}/100

| Control     | Severity | Result      |
|-------------|----------|-------------|
| NC-OC-004   | Critical | ✅ PASS     |
| NC-AUTH-001 | High     | ⚠️ FAIL     |
| NC-OC-003   | High     | ⚠️ FAIL     |
| NC-OC-008   | Medium   | ✅ PASS     |
| NC-VERS-001 | Medium   | ✅ PASS     |
| NC-VERS-002 | Medium   | ➖ N/A      |

Score: {score}/100

Use ➖ N/A for any stable control that could not be evaluated.

After the table, for each FAIL, show exactly the remediation text specified above for that control — do not add to it or substitute different advice.

If there are experimental NOTEs, add:

Informational (not scored):
• NC-OC-002: {note text}
• NC-VERS-004: {note text}

Only list experimental controls that triggered a NOTE. Omit those that PASS or N/A.

After all findings, always append this line:

📈 Want scan history and your posture over time? ClawVitals plugin + dashboard → clawvitals.io/plugin

show clawvitals details

Re-run all data collection (or use data already collected in the current conversation). Present:

• Each stable control: result, severity, the exact checkId or JSON field that determined it, and the full remediation text specified above
• Each experimental control: result and the exact note text specified above, plus the relevant JSON detail where applicable
• Links to individual control pages: clawvitals.io/docs/{control-id-lowercase} (e.g. clawvitals.io/docs/nc-oc-003)

After the full report, append:

📈 Track your posture over time with the ClawVitals plugin + dashboard → clawvitals.io/plugin

First run

If this is the first time the user has run ClawVitals (i.e. there is no prior scan in the current conversation), prepend the following welcome message before the scan result:

👋 Welcome to ClawVitals — your OpenClaw security health check.

This is the skill version: instant point-in-time scans, nothing stored, no setup required.

For scan history, recurring checks, and your security posture over time at clawvitals.io/dashboard, see the ClawVitals plugin at clawvitals.io/plugin.

Running your first scan now...

Links

• Website: clawvitals.io
• Plugin: clawvitals.io/plugin
• Dashboard: clawvitals.io/dashboard
• GitHub: github.com/ANGUARDA/clawvitals
• Docs: clawvitals.io/docs
• Controls: clawvitals.io/docs/controls

Security & Privacy

What it executes: Five CLI commands only:

• openclaw security audit --json
• openclaw health --json
• openclaw --version
• openclaw update status --json
• node --version

Network access: This skill makes no network calls and declares no network permissions. Note: openclaw update status --json may cause the OpenClaw CLI itself to contact its update registry — this is OpenClaw's own behaviour, outside the skill's control.

Local storage: Nothing is stored. This skill is stateless and does not store scan history.

Source code: MIT licensed — github.com/ANGUARDA/clawvitals