Untrusted search path in OpenClaw - CVE-2026-41294
Published: April 30, 2026
Vulnerability identifier: #VU128645
CSH Severity: High
CVSS v4.0: 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/E:U/U:Amber
CVE-ID: CVE-2026-41294
CWE-ID: CWE-426
Exploitation vector: Remote access
Exploit availability:
No public exploit available
Vendor: OpenClaw
Affected software:
OpenClaw
OpenClaw
Detailed vulnerability description
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.
How to mitigate CVE-2026-41294
Install security update from vendor's website.