Moltbot Security

Security hardening for AI agents - Moltbot, OpenClaw, Cursor, Claude. Lock down gateway, fix permissions, auth, firewalls. Essential for vibe-coding setups.

Moltbot Security Guide

Your Moltbot gateway was designed for local use. When exposed to the internet without proper security, attackers can access your API keys, private messages, and full system access.

Based on: Real vulnerability research that found 1,673+ exposed OpenClaw/Moltbot gateways on Shodan.

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TL;DR - The 5 Essentials

1. Bind to loopback — Never expose gateway to public internet
2. Set auth token — Require authentication for all requests
3. Fix file permissions — Only you should read config files
4. Update Node.js — Use v22.12.0+ to avoid known vulnerabilities
5. Use Tailscale — Secure remote access without public exposure

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What Gets Exposed (The Real Risk)

When your gateway is publicly accessible:

• Complete conversation histories (Telegram, WhatsApp, Signal, iMessage)
• API keys for Claude, OpenAI, and other providers
• OAuth tokens and bot credentials
• Full shell access to host machine

Prompt injection attack example: An attacker sends you an email with hidden instructions. Your AI reads it, extracts your recent emails, and forwards summaries to the attacker. No hacking required.

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Quick Security Audit

Run this to check your current security posture:

bash

openclaw security audit --deep

Auto-fix issues:

bash

openclaw security audit --deep --fix

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Step 1: Bind Gateway to Loopback Only

What this does: Prevents the gateway from accepting connections from other machines.

Check your ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json:

json

{
  "gateway": {
    "bind": "loopback"
  }
}

Options:

• loopback — Only accessible from localhost (most secure)
• lan — Accessible from local network only
• auto — Binds to all interfaces (dangerous if exposed)

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Step 2: Set Up Authentication

Option A: Token Authentication (Recommended)

Generate a secure token:

bash

openssl rand -hex 32

Add to your config:

json

{
  "gateway": {
    "auth": {
      "mode": "token",
      "token": "your-64-char-hex-token-here"
    }
  }
}

Or set via environment:

bash

export CLAWDBOT_GATEWAY_TOKEN="your-secure-random-token-here"

Option B: Password Authentication

json

{
  "gateway": {
    "auth": {
      "mode": "password"
    }
  }
}

Then:

bash

export CLAWDBOT_GATEWAY_PASSWORD="your-secure-password-here"

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Step 3: Lock Down File Permissions

What this does: Ensures only you can read sensitive config files.

bash

chmod 700 ~/.openclaw
chmod 600 ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json
chmod 700 ~/.openclaw/credentials

Permission meanings:

• 700 = Only owner can access folder
• 600 = Only owner can read/write file

Or let OpenClaw fix it:

bash

openclaw security audit --fix

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Step 4: Disable Network Broadcasting

What this does: Stops OpenClaw from announcing itself via mDNS/Bonjour.

Add to your shell config (~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc):

bash

export CLAWDBOT_DISABLE_BONJOUR=1

Reload:

bash

source ~/.zshrc

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Step 5: Update Node.js

Older Node.js versions have security vulnerabilities. You need v22.12.0+.

Check version:

bash

node --version

Mac (Homebrew):

bash

brew update && brew upgrade node

Ubuntu/Debian:

bash

curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_22.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs

Windows: Download from nodejs.org

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Step 6: Set Up Tailscale (Remote Access)

What this does: Creates encrypted tunnel between your devices. Access OpenClaw from anywhere without public exposure.

Install Tailscale:

bash

# Linux
curl -fsSL https://tailscale.com/install.sh | sh
sudo tailscale up

# Mac
brew install tailscale

Configure OpenClaw for Tailscale:

json

{
  "gateway": {
    "bind": "loopback",
    "tailscale": {
      "mode": "serve"
    }
  }
}

Now access via your Tailscale network only.

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Step 7: Firewall Setup (UFW)

For cloud servers (AWS, DigitalOcean, Hetzner, etc.)

Install UFW:

bash

sudo apt update && sudo apt install ufw -y

Set defaults:

bash

sudo ufw default deny incoming
sudo ufw default allow outgoing

Allow SSH (don't skip!):

bash

sudo ufw allow ssh

Allow Tailscale (if using):

bash

sudo ufw allow in on tailscale0

Enable:

bash

sudo ufw enable

Verify:

bash

sudo ufw status verbose

⚠️ Never do this:

bash

# DON'T - exposes your gateway publicly
sudo ufw allow 18789

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Step 8: SSH Hardening

Disable password auth (use SSH keys):

bash

sudo nano /etc/ssh/sshd_config

Change:

text

PasswordAuthentication no
PermitRootLogin no

Restart:

bash

sudo systemctl restart sshd

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Security Checklist

Before deploying:

• Gateway bound to loopback or lan
• Auth token or password set
• File permissions locked (600/700)
• mDNS/Bonjour disabled
• Node.js v22.12.0+
• Tailscale configured (if remote)
• Firewall blocking port 18789
• SSH password auth disabled

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Config Template (Secure Defaults)

json

{
  "gateway": {
    "port": 18789,
    "bind": "loopback",
    "auth": {
      "mode": "token",
      "token": "YOUR_64_CHAR_HEX_TOKEN"
    },
    "tailscale": {
      "mode": "serve"
    }
  }
}

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Credits

Based on security research by @NickSpisak_ who found 1,673+ exposed gateways on Shodan.

Original article: https://x.com/nickspisak_/status/2016195582180700592

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Installation

bash

clawdhub install NextFrontierBuilds/moltbot, openclaw-security

Built by @NextXFrontier