OpenClaw Safe Setup

Most OpenClaw setups are insecure out of the box. openclaw onboard doesn't create a dedicated user, doesn't lock file permissions, doesn't set DM allowlists, and doesn't run a security audit. In early 2026, researchers found thousands of exposed OpenClaw instances and over 1,000 malicious skills on ClawHub. This repo exists because the defaults aren't safe enough.

Drop this folder into Claude Code and say "set up OpenClaw using this guide." Claude walks you through every step, checks online for the latest versions, and configures everything. Takes about 10 minutes.

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What This Does (That openclaw onboard Doesn't)

	openclaw onboard	This repo
Dedicated non-admin user	No	Yes
Loopback-only networking	No	Yes
DM allowlist	No	Yes
File permission lockdown	No	Yes (700/600)
Config immutability	No	Yes (chflags uchg)
Security scanner skill	No	Yes (installed first)
15-point verification	No	Yes
Auto-checks for latest versions	No	Yes (via Claude Code)

Plus:

• Token-based gateway authentication
• launchd daemon with auto-start and crash recovery
• 4 verified skills pre-installed
• Bonjour/mDNS disabled, secrets redacted from logs

What You Need

• Mac Mini M4 (or any always-on Mac with Apple Silicon)
• 16GB RAM
• macOS 15+
• Admin access
• One LLM API key (Anthropic, OpenAI, or Google)
• A Telegram account

Quick Start (with Claude Code)

Open Claude Code in this directory and say:

"Set up OpenClaw on this machine using the CLAUDE.md guide"

Claude reads CLAUDE.md, runs each script in order, asks for your API keys, and verifies the setup. Takes about 10 minutes.

Manual Setup

# cd into the setup folder first
cd openclaw-setup

# 1. Install prerequisites (Node.js, OpenClaw)
bash scripts/prerequisites.sh

# 2. Create dedicated user (requires sudo)
sudo bash scripts/create-user.sh

# 3. Security hardening + base config
sudo -u openclaw -i bash $(pwd)/scripts/harden.sh

# 4. Configure API keys (interactive prompts)
sudo -u openclaw -i bash $(pwd)/scripts/setup-keys.sh

# 5. Set up Telegram
sudo -u openclaw -i bash $(pwd)/scripts/setup-telegram.sh

# 6. Install daemon (auto-start on boot)
sudo -u openclaw -i bash $(pwd)/scripts/install-daemon.sh

# 7. Install safe skills
sudo -u openclaw -i bash $(pwd)/scripts/install-skills.sh

# 8. Verify everything
sudo -u openclaw -i bash $(pwd)/scripts/verify.sh

# 9. Optional: daily briefing
sudo -u openclaw -i bash $(pwd)/scripts/setup-briefing.sh

Security Posture

Layer	Setting
User	Dedicated non-admin openclaw account
Network	Loopback only (127.0.0.1)
Auth	Token-based gateway
DMs	Allowlist (only your Telegram ID)
Sessions	Per-channel-peer isolation
Filesystem	Workspace-only access
Exec	Deny by default
Config	Immutable (chflags uchg)
Discovery	mDNS/Bonjour disabled
Logging	API keys auto-redacted
Daemon	Auto-start, auto-restart, crash recovery

File Structure

openclaw-setup/
├── CLAUDE.md                    # Instructions for Claude Code
├── README.md                    # This file
├── config/
│   ├── openclaw.json            # Secure base config (copied during setup)
│   └── ai.openclaw.gateway.plist  # Daemon template (reference only)
└── scripts/
    ├── prerequisites.sh         # Install Node.js + OpenClaw
    ├── create-user.sh           # Create dedicated macOS user
    ├── harden.sh                # Security hardening + config
    ├── setup-keys.sh            # API key configuration
    ├── setup-telegram.sh        # Telegram bot + allowlist
    ├── install-daemon.sh        # launchd daemon setup
    ├── install-skills.sh        # Install verified skills
    ├── setup-briefing.sh        # Daily morning briefing (optional)
    └── verify.sh                # Post-setup verification

Adding More Skills

# Inspect before installing
npx clawhub inspect <skill-name>

# Install
npx clawhub install <skill-name>

# Useful additions:
npx clawhub install shopify          # E-commerce monitoring
npx clawhub install supabase         # Database queries
npx clawhub install n8n              # Workflow automation
npx clawhub install alpaca-trading   # Stock trading (paper mode!)
npx clawhub install x-twitter        # Social monitoring
npx clawhub install github-mcp       # GitHub integration

Always run openclaw security audit --deep after installing new skills.

Maintenance

Task	Frequency	Command
Update OpenClaw	Monthly	npm update -g openclaw
Update skills	Monthly	npx clawhub update --all
Security audit	Weekly	openclaw security audit --deep
Check logs	As needed	tail -f ~/.openclaw/logs/openclaw.log
Check CVEs	Monthly	Search "OpenClaw CVE 2026"

Why Mac Mini

Factor	Why
Always-on	Runs as a daemon — boots, runs, restarts automatically
Power	~5W idle, ~$1/month electricity
Silent	Fanless at agent workloads
Isolation	Separate machine, separate account, separate keychain
Price	M4 16GB is $500

Known Issues

• CVE-2026-25253 (patched in 2026.1.29): One-click RCE via WebSocket hijacking. The install script checks for this.
• ClawHub malware (Feb 2026): 1,184 malicious skills were purged. Only install verified skills. The security scanner checks for this.
• macOS permissions: After granting Full Disk Access / Accessibility, you must restart Terminal. The setup reminds you.

License

MIT