CVE-2026-32036: Openclaw OpenClaw Has Gateway Plugin Auth Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-mwxv-35wr-4vvj
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CVSS 6.5
CWE-289 CWE-22
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-32036 is a HIGH (CVSS 6.5) openclaw has gateway plugin auth vulnerability (CWE-289: Authentication Bypass by Alternate Name) affecting Openclaw libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves openclaw has gateway plugin auth bypass via encoded dot-segment traversal in protected /api/channels paths. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 2026.2.26.

CVE-2026-32036 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-32036
GHSA Identifier GHSA-mwxv-35wr-4vvj
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 6.5
CWE Classification CWE-289: Authentication Bypass by Alternate Name
Affected Product Openclaw
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 6.5

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:N).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity High (AC:H)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality Low (C:L)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability None (A:N)

How to Fix CVE-2026-32036

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Openclaw dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

openclaw fixed: 2026.2.26 
npm install openclaw@2026.2.26
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

npm ls openclaw

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2026-32036, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls openclaw

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Openclaw in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 2026.2.26), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls openclaw command inspects dependencies declared in your package.json and lockfile; it does not perform automated runtime dynamic scanning.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-289: Authentication Bypass by Alternate Name, where the product performs authentication based on the name of a resource being accessed, or the name of the actor performing the access, but it does not properly check all possible names for that resource or actor. In Openclaw, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

### Summary Gateway plugin route auth protection for `/api/channels` could be bypassed using encoded dot-segment traversal (for example `..%2f`) in path variants that plugin handlers normalize. ### Affected Packages / Versions - Package: npm `openclaw` - Latest published vulnerable version: `2026.2.25` - Vulnerable version range: `<= 2026.2.25` - Patched version: `2026.2.26` (planned next release) ### Impact Under affected versions, crafted alternate paths could bypass gateway auth checks for protected plugin channel routes when plugin handlers decode/canonicalize the incoming path and then route to `/api/channels/...` handlers. ### Fix Commit(s) - `258d615c45527ffda37cecd08cd268f97461bde0` ### Release Process Note `patched_versions` is pre-set to the planned next release (`2026.2.26`). After npm publish, maintainers only need to publish the advisory. OpenClaw thanks @zpbrent for reporting.

CVE-2026-32036 Affected Openclaw Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
2026.2.26
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
openclaw
npm/openclaw
npm
< 2026.2.26
2026.2.26

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-mwxv-35wr-4vvj
NVD — CVE-2026-32036 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-32036
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/258d615c45527ffda37cecd08cd268f97461bde0
Openclaw Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw
www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw... WEB
https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-authentication-bypass-via-encoded-dot-segment-traversal-in-api-channels

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-32036?
CVE-2026-32036 is a security vulnerability in Openclaw involving OpenClaw has gateway plugin auth bypass via encoded dot-segment traversal in protected /api/channels paths under CWE-289: Authentication Bypass by Alternate Name.
Which Openclaw versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 2026.2.26 across affected packages: openclaw.
What version fixes CVE-2026-32036?
Upgrading to 2026.2.26 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is openclaw affected?
Yes, openclaw is affected in releases prior to 2026.2.26. Upgrade your dependency to 2026.2.26 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-32036?
CVE-2026-32036 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 6.5 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-32036?
CVE-2026-32036 is classified under CWE-289: Authentication Bypass by Alternate Name (The product performs authentication based on the name of a resource being accessed, or the name of the actor performing the access, but it does not properly check all possible names for that resource or actor.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2026-32036?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls openclaw'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-mwxv-35wr-4vvj",
  "modified" : "2026-03-20T21:12:44Z",
  "published" : "2026-03-03T18:54:35Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-32036" ],
  "summary" : "OpenClaw has gateway plugin auth bypass via encoded dot-segment traversal in protected /api/channels paths",
  "details" : "### Summary\nGateway plugin route auth protection for `/api/channels` could be bypassed using encoded dot-segment traversal (for example `..%2f`) in path variants that plugin handlers normalize.\n\n### Affected Packages / Versions\n- Package: npm `openclaw`\n- Latest published vulnerable version: `2026.2.25`\n- Vulnerable version range: `<= 2026.2.25`\n- Patched version: `2026.2.26` (planned next release)\n\n### Impact\nUnder affected versions, crafted alternate paths could bypass gateway auth checks for protected plugin channel routes when plugin handlers decode/canonicalize the incoming path and then route to `/api/channels/...` handlers.\n\n### Fix Commit(s)\n- `258d615c45527ffda37cecd08cd268f97461bde0`\n\n### Release Process Note\n`patched_versions` is pre-set to the planned next release (`2026.2.26`). After npm publish, maintainers only need to publish the advisory.\n\nOpenClaw thanks @zpbrent for reporting.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:N"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:H/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:L/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "openclaw"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2026.2.26"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 2026.2.25"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-mwxv-35wr-4vvj"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-32036"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/258d615c45527ffda37cecd08cd268f97461bde0"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-authentication-bypass-via-encoded-dot-segment-traversal-in-api-channels"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-22", "CWE-289" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-03-03T18:54:35Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-03-19T22:16:39Z"
  }
}