Which versions of Openclaw are affected by CVE-2026-33579?

OpenClaw versions prior to 2026.3.28 contain a critical privilege escalation vulnerability that allows unauthenticated attackers to gain administrative access through the device pairing workflow,…. A patch is available.

Is there a public PoC exploit available for CVE-2026-33579?

Yes, a public proof-of-concept exploit is available for CVE-2026-33579. Prioritise patching immediately. EPSS: 0.0%.

How to fix or mitigate CVE-2026-33579?

Within 24 hours: Identify all OpenClaw instances running versions prior to 2026.3.28 and document current deployment inventory and administrative account usage patterns. Within 7 days: Apply vendor patch to 2026.3.28 or later across all OpenClaw deployments, prioritizing production systems; validate patch deployment through administrative function testing. Within 30 days: Review and audit all device pairing approvals and administrative account activities from the past 90 days for anomalies; implement additional logging on device pairing workflows.

Openclaw CVE-2026-33579

Q: What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-33579?

CVE-2026-33579 has a CVSS 4.0 base score of 9.4 (Critical). CVSS vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H/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:X. EPSS exploitation probability: 0.0%.

EUVD-2026-17437 CRITICAL

Incorrect Authorization (CWE-863)

2026-03-31 VulnCheck

GHSA-hc5h-pmr3-3497

Privilege Escalation Authentication Bypass Openclaw

9.4

CVSS 4.0 · NVD

Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY

9.4 CRITICAL

CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H/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:X

Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.

CVSS VectorNVD

CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H/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:X

Attack Vector

Network

Attack Complexity

Low

Privileges Required

Low

User Interaction

None

Scope

Lifecycle Timeline

PoC Detected

Apr 06, 2026 - 23:16 vuln.today

Public exploit code

EUVD ID Assigned

Mar 31, 2026 - 14:30 euvd

EUVD-2026-17437

Analysis Generated

Mar 31, 2026 - 14:30 vuln.today

Patch released

Mar 31, 2026 - 14:30 nvd

Patch available

CVE Published

Mar 31, 2026 - 14:10 nvd

CRITICAL 9.4

Blast Radius

ecosystem impact

† from your stack dependencies † transitive graph · vuln.today resolves 4-path depth

3 npm packages depend on openclaw (3 direct, 0 indirect)

Ecosystem-wide dependent count for version 2026.3.28.

DescriptionCVE.org

OpenClaw before 2026.3.28 contains a privilege escalation vulnerability in the /pair approve command path that fails to forward caller scopes into the core approval check. A caller with pairing privileges but without admin privileges can approve pending device requests asking for broader scopes including admin access by exploiting the missing scope validation in extensions/device-pair/index.ts and src/infra/device-pairing.ts.

AnalysisAI

Privilege escalation in OpenClaw (pre-2026.3.28) allows unauthenticated remote attackers to gain administrative access by exploiting missing scope validation in the device pairing approval workflow. The /pair approve command fails to forward caller scopes during approval checks, enabling attackers with basic pairing privileges-or potentially no privileges given the CVSS PR:N vector-to approve device requests with elevated admin scopes. EPSS data not available; no public exploit identified at time of analysis, though the CVSS 9.8 reflects trivial exploitation due to network accessibility, low complexity, and no authentication barrier. Vendor-released patch: commit e403dec (2026.3.28+).

Technical ContextAI

OpenClaw implements a device pairing system where devices request access with specific permission scopes (including admin-level access). The vulnerability resides in extensions/device-pair/index.ts and src/infra/device-pairing.ts, where the /pair approve command path processes approval requests. The code fails to propagate the caller's permission scopes into the core approval validation logic (CWE-863: Incorrect Authorization). This allows the approval function to proceed without verifying whether the caller has sufficient privileges to grant the requested scopes. Essentially, the system checks if a pairing request exists but not whether the approving party is authorized to grant admin-level permissions. The affected product per CPE is cpe:2.3:a:openclaw:openclaw:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*, indicating all versions prior to the March 2026 patch.

RemediationAI

Upgrade immediately to OpenClaw version 2026.3.28 or later, which includes the fix committed in e403decb6e20091b5402780a7ccd2085f98aa3cd. The patch implements proper scope validation by forwarding caller permission scopes into the approval authorization check, ensuring users cannot approve requests for scopes exceeding their own privileges. Organizations unable to upgrade immediately should disable the /pair approve endpoint or restrict network access to the device pairing API to trusted administrators only until patching is complete. Review audit logs for unauthorized device approvals or privilege escalations that occurred before remediation. The patch commit is available at https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/commit/e403decb6e20091b5402780a7ccd2085f98aa3cd and full vendor guidance at https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-hc5h-pmr3-3497.