Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-32231

Access Control in Zeptoclaw ≤ 0.7.5

Public PoCAccess Control
Published
12 March 2026
Modified
20 March 2026
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 8.2
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:N
EPSS Score 0.0018 8th percentile
Risk Priority 59 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2026-32231 is a high-severity Missing Authentication for Critical Function (CWE-306) vulnerability in Zeptoclaw Zeptoclaw. Its CVSS base score is 8.2 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked at the 8th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.

This vulnerability is AI-related — categorised as Enterprise AI Assistants; in the Supply Chain and Deployment risk domain.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to AC-14 (Permitted Actions Without Identification or Authentication) and IA-2 (Identification and Authentication (Organizational Users)) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

CVE-2026-32231 is a vulnerability in ZeptoClaw, a personal AI assistant, affecting versions prior to 0.7.6. The issue lies in the generic webhook channel, which trusts caller-supplied identity fields—such as sender and chat_id—from the request body and applies authorization checks to those untrusted values. Authentication is optional and defaults to disabled (auth_token: None), allowing improper verification. The vulnerability carries a CVSS v3.1 score of 8.2 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:N) and is linked to CWE-306 (Missing Authentication for Critical Function) and CWE-345 (Insufficient Verification of Data Authenticity). It was published on 2026-03-12T19:16:17.027.

An attacker with network access to the POST /webhook endpoint can exploit this without privileges, authentication, or user interaction. By spoofing an allowlisted sender and specifying arbitrary chat_id values, they enable high-risk message spoofing and potential IDOR-style abuse in session or chat routing.

The vulnerability is addressed in ZeptoClaw 0.7.6. Mitigation details are available in the fixing commit (https://github.com/qhkm/zeptoclaw/commit/bf004a20d3687a0c1a9e052ec79536e30d6de134), pull request #324 (https://github.com/qhkm/zeptoclaw/pull/324), release tag v0.7.6 (https://github.com/qhkm/zeptoclaw/releases/tag/v0.7.6), and GitHub security advisory GHSA-46q5-g3j9-wx5c (https://github.com/qhkm/zeptoclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-46q5-g3j9-wx5c).

ZeptoClaw's nature as a personal AI assistant underscores authentication risks in webhook channels for AI deployments where defaults permit unauthenticated access.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

ZeptoClaw is a personal AI assistant. Prior to 0.7.6, the generic webhook channel trusts caller-supplied identity fields (sender, chat_id) from the request body and applies authorization checks to those untrusted values. Because authentication is optional and defaults to disabled (auth_token:…

more

None), an attacker who can reach POST /webhook can spoof an allowlisted sender and choose arbitrary chat_id values, enabling high-risk message spoofing and potential IDOR-style session/chat routing abuse. This vulnerability is fixed in 0.7.6.

CWE(s)

AI Security AnalysisAI

AI Category
Enterprise AI Assistants
Risk Domain
Supply Chain and Deployment
OWASP Top 10 for LLMs 2025
None mapped
Classification Reason
Matched keywords: ai

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
T1553.005 Mark-of-the-Web Bypass Defense Impairment
Adversaries may abuse specific file formats to subvert Mark-of-the-Web (MOTW) controls.
T1133 External Remote Services Persistence
Adversaries may leverage external-facing remote services to initially access and/or persist within a network.
T1195 Supply Chain Compromise Initial Access
Adversaries may manipulate products or product delivery mechanisms prior to receipt by a final consumer for the purpose of data or system compromise.
T1195.001 Compromise Software Dependencies and Development Tools Initial Access
Adversaries may manipulate software dependencies and development tools prior to receipt by a final consumer for the purpose of data or system compromise.
T1195.002 Compromise Software Supply Chain Initial Access
Adversaries may manipulate application software prior to receipt by a final consumer for the purpose of data or system compromise.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2023-4699Shared CWE-306, CWE-345
CVE-2026-25474Shared CWE-345
CVE-2026-26327Shared CWE-345
CVE-2026-44592Shared CWE-306, CWE-345
CVE-2026-25602Shared CWE-345
CVE-2026-9189Shared CWE-345
CVE-2025-8038Shared CWE-345
CVE-2023-25178Shared CWE-345
CVE-2025-8979Shared CWE-345
CVE-2025-5833Shared CWE-345

Affected Assets

zeptoclaw
zeptoclaw
≤ 0.7.5

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)
  • 14 hardening rules · 5 OS baselines
Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V6.2.3
  • V6.4.4
  • V10.4.16
  • V12.1.3

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

Directly mandates unique identification and authentication of users before access to functions requiring identity.

Extends the same authentication requirement to non-organizational users accessing critical functionality.

Requires authentication of services before they can invoke or expose critical functions.

Explicit requirement to protect session authenticity structurally prevents the weakness for communications.

Explicitly identifies and limits actions permitted without authentication, preventing critical functions from being exposed.

Integrity verification tools detect (but do not stop) the acceptance of data lacking authenticity.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.AA-03 full match
prevents

Directly requires authentication of users/services/hardware, which eliminates missing authentication for critical functions.

RC.RP-05 mostly match
degrades

CWE-345 directly impairs RC.RP-05's verification of restored-asset integrity/authenticity, largely defeating the outcome while still leaving other restoration-confirmation steps partially viable.

PR.AA-01 partial match
prevents

Managing identities and credentials is a prerequisite for authentication but does not itself enforce it on critical functions.

PR.AA-05 partial match
prevents

Defining and enforcing authorizations assumes prior authentication and therefore only partially mitigates the absence of authentication.

PR.IR-01 partial match
prevents

Protecting networks from unauthorized access can be undermined by missing authentication but does not address the root authentication gap.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

prevents

The control explicitly calls for authentication before any critical function is reached, eliminating the possibility of bypassing authentication for high-value operations.

finds

Security testing can detect missing or weak data authenticity verification.

prevents

Mandating authentication requirements for critical functions at the requirements-gathering stage ensures that essential operations are not left unprotected by missing login or verification mechanisms.

mitigates

Network controls can enforce authenticated channels, reducing risk of accepting unauthentic data.

mitigates

Mandating authentication for network services and critical functions stops attackers from invoking sensitive operations without credentials, closing gaps where authentication is absent for important capabilities.

prevents

Cryptographic mechanisms directly verify data origin and integrity, preventing acceptance of unauthentic data.

Hardening callouts derived

Configuration rules from DISA STIG baselines that bear on weaknesses of the type cited by this CVE. Each rule is shown with the relationship its mapping actually records, against the CWE it was authored against. Derived via CVE→CWE over `controls_xwalks` (authoritative rows only; rows rated `none` are excluded).

Oracle Linux 8 (4 rules)
  • V-248574 YUM must be configured to prevent the installation of patches, service packs, device drivers, or OL 8 system components that have not been digitally signed using a certificate that is recognized and approved by the organization. prevents CWE-345
  • V-248575 OL 8 must prevent the installation of software, patches, service packs, device drivers, or operating system components of local packages without verification they have been digitally signed using a certificate that is issued by a Certificate Authority (CA) that is recognized and approved by the organization. prevents CWE-345
  • V-248585 OL 8 must require reauthentication when using the "sudo" command. prevents CWE-306
Oracle Linux 9 (1 rule)
  • V-271525 OL 9 must have GPG signature verification enabled for all software repositories. prevents CWE-345
RHEL 7 (4 rules)
  • V-204442 The Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system must not have the rsh-server package installed. prevents CWE-306
  • V-204447 The Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system must prevent the installation of software, patches, service packs, device drivers, or operating system components from a repository without verification they have been digitally signed using a certificate that is issued by a Certificate Authority (CA) that is recognized and approved by the organization. prevents CWE-345
  • V-204448 The Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system must prevent the installation of software, patches, service packs, device drivers, or operating system components of local packages without verification they have been digitally signed using a certificate that is issued by a Certificate Authority (CA) that is recognized and approved by the organization. prevents CWE-345
RHEL 8 (4 rules)
  • V-230492 RHEL 8 must not have the rsh-server package installed. prevents CWE-306
  • V-230264 RHEL 8 must prevent the installation of software, patches, service packs, device drivers, or operating system components from a repository without verification they have been digitally signed using a certificate that is issued by a Certificate Authority (CA) that is recognized and approved by the organization. prevents CWE-345
  • V-230265 RHEL 8 must prevent the installation of software, patches, service packs, device drivers, or operating system components of local packages without verification they have been digitally signed using a certificate that is issued by a Certificate Authority (CA) that is recognized and approved by the organization. prevents CWE-345
RHEL 9 (1 rule)
  • V-257822 RHEL 9 must have GPG signature verification enabled for all software repositories. prevents CWE-345

References