Privilege Escalation in openclaw (CVE-2026-32987)
Summary
Vulnerability in openclaw (CVE-2026-32987). Risk of unauthorized operations or information disclosure. Exploitable via openclaw. Mitigation: upgrade to 2026.3.13 or later.
Original description
The description as published by the source.
Summary
openclaw versions <= 2026.3.12 allowed bootstrap setup codes to be replayed before approval, which could widen the scopes on a pending device pairing request.
Affected Packages / Versions
- Package:
openclaw(npm) - Affected versions:
<= 2026.3.12 - Fixed version:
2026.3.13
Details
The vulnerable path was bootstrap token verification in src/infra/device-bootstrap.ts. In affected releases, a valid bootstrap setup code could be verified more than once before the pairing request was approved. That allowed a second verification attempt to mutate a pending device pairing and request broader scopes, including escalation from a lower operator scope to operator.admin, before an approver finalized the pairing.
This issue is in scope under OpenClaw's trust model because bootstrap setup codes are an authentication primitive for device pairing and the replay changed the privileges granted to the pending device.
Fix
openclaw@2026.3.13 makes bootstrap setup codes single-use. Current code consumes the bootstrap token record on the first successful verification, so replay attempts fail before pending scopes can be widened.
Regression coverage exists in src/infra/device-pairing.test.ts (rejects bootstrap token replay before pending scope escalation can be approved).
Fix Commit(s)
1803d16d5cec970c54b0e1ac46b31b1cbade335c
Thanks @tdjackey for reporting.
Source: OSV.dev (Open Source Vulnerabilities) NVD GitHub Advisory OSV
Auto-generated summary
Assembled by SecPulse from the source data (CVSS, CWE, affected versions) using templates — no AI involved. Check the original description and references below for exact details.
A vulnerability tracked as CVE-2026-32987 has been found in openclaw.
Attackers can target a specific entry point like openclaw over the network to misuse the product.
Risk of unauthorized operations or information disclosure.
What to do: upgrade openclaw to 2026.3.13 or later.
If unsure, ask your IT team or search "openclaw CVE-2026-32987" on the vendor's site.
CVE-2026-32987 (openclaw) — CWE-269
Attack surface: openclaw / npm / operator.admin
Patched: 2026.3.13 — apply immediately
Plan: 1) Audit SBOM/dependencies, 2) Stage→prod upgrade, 3) Add WAF/proxy monitoring on affected endpoints, 4) Hunt IOCs in logs.
Refs: see the GHSA / vendor advisory / patched release linked on this page.
A vulnerability (CWE-269) exists in openclaw. Attackers reach the vulnerable code path via openclaw.
Check the vendor advisory for the affected versions of openclaw. Attack surface: openclaw / npm / operator.admin.
Severity: ?. Risk of unauthorized operations or information disclosure.
Update to 2026.3.13.
Until the patch is applied: disable the affected feature, apply WAF rules, or restrict access via network ACLs.
Search webserver/proxy logs for unusual request patterns matching this CVE's known IOCs. Run grep -r 'openclaw' . against your dependency files (package-lock.json, requirements.txt, go.sum) to find affected services.
Response actions
Concrete steps and command examples for SOC/SRE teams to execute in order
-
1Identify exposure identify
grep -r 'openclaw' . | grep -v node_modulesリポジトリと本番環境の依存ファイル (package-lock.json / requirements.txt / go.sum / Gemfile.lock 等) で
openclawを grep し、稼働しているサービス・バージョンを把握する。 -
2Apply patch patch
Upgrade openclaw to 2026.3.13ステージング環境で 2026.3.13 に上げて回帰テスト → 本番反映。回帰テストはアプリの主要ハッピーパスを含めること。
-
3Post-deployment verification verify
Confirm patched version is live in productionパッチ適用後、ステージングで PoC または同等の悪用パターンを再現して脆弱性が閉じたことを確認。本番ではアクセスログ・WAF でアラート再発が無いか継続監視。
Affected packages
References
- package github.com
- web github.com
- web github.com