CVE-2026-53843: OpenClaw Pairing-scoped Device Session Could Restore Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-q99w-vh6v-q3v7
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CVSS 8.8
CWE-284 CWE-863
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-53843 is a HIGH (CVSS 8.8) pairing-scoped device session could restore vulnerability (CWE-284: Improper Access Control) affecting OpenClaw libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves pairing-scoped device session could restore revoked node token authority. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 2026.5.26.

CVE-2026-53843 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-53843
GHSA Identifier GHSA-q99w-vh6v-q3v7
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 8.8
CWE Classification CWE-284: Improper Access Control
Affected Product OpenClaw
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 8.8

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

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

How to Fix CVE-2026-53843

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: 2026.5.26 
npm install openclaw@2026.5.26
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-2026-53843, 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 2026.5.26), 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-284: Improper Access Control, where the product does not restrict or incorrectly restricts access to a resource from an unauthorized 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 In affected releases, a surviving pairing-scoped session for a device could re-establish node token authority after that node token had been revoked. Revocation should require the device to lose that authority unless it is approved again through the normal pairing flow. This issue affects token revocation and device-role containment. It does not allow unauthenticated device creation. ### Affected configurations This affects deployments where an already paired device keeps a same-device session with pairing-related scope after its node token is revoked. ### Impact A device that should have lost node WebSocket authority could regain it without renewed approval. That weakens revocation as an operator control and can keep node-level access alive longer than intended. The impact is limited to devices that already had a legitimate pairing/session foothold. ### Patched Versions The first stable patched version is `2026.5.26`. ### Mitigations Upgrade to `openclaw@2026.5.26` or later. If a node token was revoked on an older version, restart the gateway and remove/re-pair the affected device to ensure no stale session remains active.

CVE-2026-53843 Affected OpenClaw Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
2026.5.26
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
openclaw
npm/openclaw
npm
< 2026.5.26
2026.5.26

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-q99w-vh6v-q3v7
NVD — CVE-2026-53843 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-53843
OpenClaw Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw
www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw... WEB
https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-node-token-revocation-bypass-via-pairing-scoped-device-session

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-53843?
CVE-2026-53843 is a security vulnerability in OpenClaw involving Pairing-scoped device session could restore revoked node token authority under CWE-284: Improper Access Control.
Which OpenClaw versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 2026.5.26 across affected packages: openclaw.
What version fixes CVE-2026-53843?
Upgrading to 2026.5.26 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is openclaw affected?
Yes, openclaw is affected in releases prior to 2026.5.26. Upgrade your dependency to 2026.5.26 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-53843?
CVE-2026-53843 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.8 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-53843?
CVE-2026-53843 is classified under CWE-284: Improper Access Control (The product does not restrict or incorrectly restricts access to a resource from an unauthorized actor.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2026-53843?
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-q99w-vh6v-q3v7",
  "modified" : "2026-06-18T13:03:24Z",
  "published" : "2026-06-18T13:03:24Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-53843" ],
  "summary" : "OpenClaw: Pairing-scoped device session could restore revoked node token authority",
  "details" : "### Summary\n\nIn affected releases, a surviving pairing-scoped session for a device could re-establish node token authority after that node token had been revoked. Revocation should require the device to lose that authority unless it is approved again through the normal pairing flow.\n\nThis issue affects token revocation and device-role containment. It does not allow unauthenticated device creation.\n\n### Affected configurations\n\nThis affects deployments where an already paired device keeps a same-device session with pairing-related scope after its node token is revoked.\n\n### Impact\n\nA device that should have lost node WebSocket authority could regain it without renewed approval. That weakens revocation as an operator control and can keep node-level access alive longer than intended.\n\nThe impact is limited to devices that already had a legitimate pairing/session foothold.\n\n### Patched Versions\n\nThe first stable patched version is `2026.5.26`.\n\n### Mitigations\n\nUpgrade to `openclaw@2026.5.26` or later. If a node token was revoked on an older version, restart the gateway and remove/re-pair the affected device to ensure no stale session remains active.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "openclaw"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2026.5.26"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-q99w-vh6v-q3v7"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-53843"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-node-token-revocation-bypass-via-pairing-scoped-device-session"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-284", "CWE-863" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-06-18T13:03:24Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}