When your admin interface is open to the world
Misconfigured reverse proxies and exposed dashboards give attackers direct access to your OpenClaw control panel, credentials, and connected services.
Exposed control panels occur when the OpenClaw admin interface is accessible from the public internet without proper authentication. This is one of the most common and dangerous misconfigurations in self-hosted AI agent deployments.
The OpenClaw control panel (web dashboard) is designed for local use, but many users deploy it behind reverse proxies or on cloud VMs without proper security. Because OpenClaw automatically trusts "local" connections, an improper proxy setup can make any internet connection appear local—granting full access with no login required.
Security researchers have found hundreds of OpenClaw instances with their admin interfaces exposed openly to the internet. Attackers scanning the internet can find these publicly reachable dashboards that require no password, allowing them to view and steal sensitive data.
Nginx or Traefik configured without authentication passes requests as if they're from localhost, bypassing all security.
Running OpenClaw on a cloud instance with public IP, binding to 0.0.0.0 instead of localhost.
Home users forwarding ports to make their OpenClaw accessible remotely without adding authentication.
OpenClaw's default configuration trusts localhost connections. When proxies pass `X-Forwarded-For` headers incorrectly, external requests appear local.
Attackers use tools like Shodan and Censys to find exposed OpenClaw instances by scanning for known signatures.
Security researcher Jamieson O'Reilly documented hundreds of open OpenClaw control panels accessible online. In his investigation:
1. He found instances where the dashboard was accessible without any authentication 2. The exposed panels revealed API keys, OAuth tokens, and chat logs 3. One instance had a linked Signal messenger account—the control panel showed a pairing QR code that would allow anyone to bind their device to the victim's Signal 4. Some instances even permitted unauthenticated remote code execution on the host
Bitdefender Labs called this a "common misconfiguration with great impact"—a simple deployment mistake that collapsed multiple security boundaries.
When you self-host your OpenClaw, you're responsible for addressing these risks:
Clawctl includes built-in protection against exposed dashboards:
Your control interface is never directly exposed to the internet. Access goes through our authenticated gateway.
Every request requires valid API tokens. No localhost trust exploits possible.
API keys and OAuth tokens are stored encrypted, never visible in any dashboard.
All dashboard access is logged. Unusual access patterns trigger alerts.
Nothing is trusted by default. Every request is authenticated regardless of origin.
Whether you use Clawctl or not, follow these best practices:
Clawctl includes enterprise-grade protection against this threat and many others. Deploy your OpenClaw securely in 60 seconds.