Vulnerability in open-webui (CVE-2026-54016)
Summary
Vulnerability in open-webui (CVE-2026-54016). Risk of unauthorized operations or information disclosure. Exploitable via search_knowledge_files. Mitigation: upgrade to 0.9.6 or later.
Original description
The description as published by the source.
Summary
Open WebUI has a Broken Object Level Authorization (BOLA) vulnerability in the builtin search_knowledge_files tool.
When native function calling is enabled and the selected model has no attached knowledge bases, an authenticated user can call search_knowledge_files with an arbitrary knowledge_id. The function then returns file metadata from that knowledge base without checking whether the user has read access.
This allows unauthorized enumeration of private or restricted knowledge base files.
Details
The vulnerable code is in:
backend/open_webui/tools/builtin.py
Affected function:
async def search_knowledge_files(
query: str,
knowledge_id: Optional[str] = None,
count: int = 5,
skip: int = 0,
__request__: Request = None,
__user__: dict = None,
__model_knowledge__: Optional[list[dict]] = None,
) -> str:
In the "No attached knowledge" branch, when knowledge_id is provided, the function directly calls:
result = await Knowledges.search_files_by_id(
knowledge_id=knowledge_id,
user_id=user_id,
filter={"query": query},
skip=skip,
limit=count,
)
This code path does not verify that the current user is authorized to access the specified knowledge base.
The missing check is inconsistent with other nearby code paths. For example, the attached-knowledge branch in the same function checks whether the user is an admin, the owner of the knowledge base, or has explicit read access th…
Source: GitHub Security Advisories (Global) NVD GitHub Advisory
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-2026-54016 has been found in open-webui.
Attackers can target a specific entry point like search_knowledge_files over the network to misuse the product.
Risk of unauthorized operations or information disclosure. CVSS score: 4.3/10.
What to do: upgrade open-webui to 0.9.6 or later.
If unsure, ask your IT team or search "open-webui CVE-2026-54016" on the vendor's site.
CVE-2026-54016 (open-webui) — CWE-639 / CVSS v3 4.3
Attack vector: remote (network-reachable) / no user interaction
Attack surface: search_knowledge_files / knowledge_id / AccessGrants / query_knowledge_files
Patched: 0.9.6 — 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-639) exists in open-webui. Attackers reach the vulnerable code path via search_knowledge_files.
Check the vendor advisory for the affected versions of open-webui. Attack surface: search_knowledge_files / knowledge_id / AccessGrants / query_knowledge_files.
Severity: Medium (CVSS 4.3/10). Risk of unauthorized operations or information disclosure.
Update to 0.9.6.
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 'open-webui' . 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 'open-webui' . | 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
open-webui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 open-webui to 0.9.6ステージング環境で 0.9.6 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
- advisory github.com
- advisory nvd.nist.gov
- package github.com
- web github.com
- web github.com
- web pypi.org