CVE-2026-42423
Openclaw ≤ 2026.4.8
Raw vector
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/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:XSummary
CVE-2026-42423 is a high-severity Failing Open (CWE-636) vulnerability in Openclaw Openclaw. Its CVSS base score is 7.7 (High).
Operationally, ranked at the 24th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to CP-12 (Safe Mode) and SC-24 (Fail in Known State) — 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-2026-42423 affects OpenClaw versions prior to 2026.4.8 and involves an approval-timeout fallback mechanism that bypasses the strictInlineEval explicit-approval requirements on gateway and node exec hosts. This vulnerability, classified under CWE-636 (Not Failing Securely), allows attackers to execute inline eval commands that are intended to require explicit user approval, thereby circumventing the designed security boundary. The issue received a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) and was published on 2026-04-28.
Attackers with low privileges (PR:L) can exploit this vulnerability over the network (AV:N), though it requires high attack complexity (AC:H) and no user interaction (UI:N). Successful exploitation enables high-impact confidentiality, integrity, and availability compromises (C:H/I:H/A:H) within the unchanged scope (S:U), specifically by leveraging the timeout fallback to run unauthorized inline eval commands on affected hosts.
Mitigation is addressed in OpenClaw 2026.4.8, with a fixing commit available at https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/d7c3210cd6f5fdfdc1beff4c9541673e814354d5. Additional details are provided in the GitHub security advisory at https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-q2gc-xjqw-qp89 and the VulnCheck advisory at https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-strictinlineeval-approval-boundary-bypass-via-approval-timeout-fallback.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2026-26126
Vulnerability Data
OpenClaw before 2026.4.8 contains an approval-timeout fallback mechanism that bypasses strictInlineEval explicit-approval requirements on gateway and node exec hosts. Attackers can exploit this timeout fallback to execute inline eval commands that should require explicit user approval, circumventing the intended security…
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- CWE(s)
Related Threats
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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V3.2.1V7.4.1V8.3.3V10.3.4
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
SC-24 directly requires the system to fail to a known state that preserves security properties, structurally stopping fallback to a less-secure mode.
SI-17 mandates explicit fail-safe procedures that activate on indicated failures, preventing the insecure fallback behavior.
CP-12 forces entry into a safe mode on detected conditions, limiting exposure but not covering every failure path.
SA-8 requires application of engineering principles that include fail-secure design, reducing the likelihood the weakness is introduced.
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.
Secure-development practices explicitly include designing error and failure handling to remain in a secure state.
Least-privilege policy and enforcement directly counters the permissive-access fallback example in the CWE.
Hardened baselines and configuration management reduce the chance that error paths default to insecure settings.
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.
The control forces an explicit evaluation step before any response, reducing the chance that a failure condition will default to an unsafe open state.