Untrusted search path in OpenClaw - CVE-2026-41294
Published: April 30, 2026
Vulnerability identifier: #VU128645
CSH Severity: High
CVSS v4: 8.6 [CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N]
CVE-ID: CVE-2026-41294
CWE-ID: CWE-426
Exploitation vector: Remote access
Exploit availability:
No public exploit available
Vulnerability details
The vulnerability allows a remote attacker to override runtime configuration and security-sensitive environment settings.
The vulnerability exists due to an untrusted search path in src/infra/dotenv.ts and src/cli/dotenv.ts when loading the current working directory .env before trusted state-dir configuration. A remote attacker can place a malicious .env file in a repository or workspace to override runtime configuration and security-sensitive environment settings.
User interaction is required because OpenClaw must be started in the malicious repository or workspace.
Affected software
OpenClaw
How to mitigate CVE-2026-41294
Install security update from vendor's website.
OpenClaw - update to 2026.3.28