📄 Description (English)
OpenClaw before 2026.3.28 contains an authorization bypass vulnerability in Discord text approval commands that allows non-approvers to resolve pending exec approvals. Attackers can send Discord text commands to bypass the channels.discord.execApprovals.approvers allowlist and approve pending host execution requests.
🤖 AI Executive Summary
CVE-2026-41303 is a critical authorization bypass vulnerability in OpenClaw that allows unauthenticated users to approve pending host execution requests through Discord text commands, bypassing the approvers allowlist. This vulnerability has a CVSS score of 8.8 and poses significant risk to organizations using OpenClaw for infrastructure automation and approval workflows. No patch is currently available, requiring immediate compensating controls and access restrictions.
📄 Description (Arabic)
🤖 AI Intelligence Analysis Analyzed: Apr 23, 2026 11:51
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia Impact Assessment
This vulnerability poses significant risk to Saudi organizations in critical sectors: (1) Banking & Financial Services (SAMA-regulated entities) using OpenClaw for infrastructure automation and approval workflows; (2) Government agencies and entities under NCA oversight utilizing OpenClaw for system administration; (3) Energy sector (ARAMCO and related entities) relying on OpenClaw for critical infrastructure management; (4) Telecommunications providers (STC, Mobily) using OpenClaw for network operations; (5) Healthcare organizations managing sensitive systems through OpenClaw. The authorization bypass could lead to unauthorized execution of critical commands, data exfiltration, system compromise, and violation of regulatory compliance requirements.
🏢 Affected Saudi Sectors
Banking & Financial Services
Government & Public Administration
Energy & Utilities
Telecommunications
Healthcare
Critical Infrastructure
🎯 MITRE ATT&CK Techniques
T1078 - Valid Accounts (using legitimate Discord accounts to bypass authorization)
T1548 - Abuse Elevation Control Mechanism (bypassing approval controls)
T1556 - Modify Authentication Process (circumventing approver allowlist)
T1087 - Account Discovery (identifying approval channels and processes)
T1098 - Account Manipulation (leveraging Discord bot permissions)
T1110 - Brute Force (potential enumeration of approval commands)
T1199 - Trusted Relationship (exploiting Discord integration trust)
T1021 - Remote Services (executing unauthorized host commands)
⚖️ Saudi Risk Score (AI)
8.9
/ 10.0
🔧 Remediation Steps (English)
IMMEDIATE ACTIONS:
1. Disable Discord text command approval functionality in OpenClaw until patch is available
2. Restrict Discord channel access to only authorized approvers using IAM controls
3. Implement network-level restrictions on Discord API communications from OpenClaw instances
4. Audit all pending and recently approved host execution requests for unauthorized approvals
5. Review Discord audit logs for suspicious approval commands from non-approver accounts
COMPENSATING CONTROLS:
1. Implement multi-factor authentication (MFA) for all Discord accounts with approval permissions
2. Deploy API gateway controls to validate approver identity before processing approval commands
3. Implement approval request logging and alerting for all execution requests
4. Require manual verification of critical host execution requests through out-of-band channels
5. Restrict OpenClaw Discord bot permissions to read-only until patch deployment
DETECTION RULES:
1. Alert on Discord approval commands from accounts not in channels.discord.execApprovals.approvers list
2. Monitor for multiple failed approval attempts followed by successful approvals
3. Track approval commands during unusual hours or from unusual geographic locations
4. Alert on approval of high-risk execution requests (system-level, database, security-related)
5. Implement webhook validation to ensure approval commands originate from authorized Discord channels
🔧 خطوات المعالجة (العربية)
الإجراءات الفورية:
1. تعطيل وظيفة الموافقة على أوامر نصية في Discord في OpenClaw حتى يتوفر التصحيح
2. تقييد الوصول إلى قناة Discord للمعتمدين المصرح لهم فقط باستخدام ضوابط إدارة الهوية والوصول
3. تنفيذ قيود على مستوى الشبكة على اتصالات Discord API من مثيلات OpenClaw
4. تدقيق جميع طلبات تنفيذ المضيف المعلقة والموافق عليها مؤخراً للموافقات غير المصرح بها
5. مراجعة سجلات تدقيق Discord للأوامر الموافقة المريبة من حسابات غير المعتمدين
الضوابط التعويضية:
1. تنفيذ المصادقة متعددة العوامل (MFA) لجميع حسابات Discord التي لها أذونات الموافقة
2. نشر ضوابط بوابة API للتحقق من هوية المعتمد قبل معالجة أوامر الموافقة
3. تنفيذ تسجيل وتنبيهات طلب الموافقة لجميع طلبات التنفيذ
4. طلب التحقق اليدوي من طلبات تنفيذ المضيف الحرجة من خلال قنوات خارج النطاق
5. تقييد أذونات روبوت Discord في OpenClaw للقراءة فقط حتى نشر التصحيح
قواعد الكشف:
1. تنبيه على أوامر الموافقة في Discord من الحسابات غير الموجودة في قائمة channels.discord.execApprovals.approvers
2. مراقبة محاولات الموافقة الفاشلة المتعددة متبوعة بموافقات ناجحة
3. تتبع أوامر الموافقة خلال ساعات غير عادية أو من مواقع جغرافية غير عادية
4. تنبيه على الموافقة على طلبات التنفيذ عالية المخاطر (مستوى النظام والقاعدة والأمان)
5. تنفيذ التحقق من webhook للتأكد من أن أوامر الموافقة تنشأ من قنوات Discord المصرح بها
📋 Regulatory Compliance Mapping
🟢 NCA ECC 2024
ECC 2024 A.5.1.1 - Access Control Policy (authorization bypass violates access control principles)
ECC 2024 A.5.2.1 - User Registration and De-registration (unauthorized approval access)
ECC 2024 A.5.3.1 - Access Rights Review (failure to enforce approver allowlist)
ECC 2024 A.8.2.1 - User Access Management (inadequate authentication/authorization)
ECC 2024 A.9.2.1 - User Responsibility (accountability for approvals compromised)
🔵 SAMA CSF
SAMA CSF ID.AM-1 - Asset Management (unauthorized execution of critical infrastructure commands)
SAMA CSF PR.AC-1 - Access Control (authorization bypass in approval workflow)
SAMA CSF PR.AC-4 - Access Rights and Privileges (failure to enforce approver restrictions)
SAMA CSF DE.CM-1 - Detection Processes (inability to detect unauthorized approvals)
SAMA CSF RS.AN-1 - Analysis (incident response capability for unauthorized executions)
🟡 ISO 27001:2022
ISO 27001:2022 A.5.2 - Information Security Policies (access control policy violation)
ISO 27001:2022 A.6.2 - Internal Organization (segregation of duties compromised)
ISO 27001:2022 A.8.2 - Asset Management (critical asset execution control failure)
ISO 27001:2022 A.9.1 - Access Control (user access management inadequacy)
ISO 27001:2022 A.9.2 - User Access Management (authorization enforcement failure)
ISO 27001:2022 A.10.1 - Cryptography (API authentication bypass)
ISO 27001:2022 A.12.4 - Logging (insufficient audit trail for approvals)
🟣 PCI DSS v4.0.1
PCI DSS 2.1 - Configuration Standards (insecure default authorization settings)
PCI DSS 7.1 - Access Control (failure to restrict access by business need)
PCI DSS 8.1 - User Identification (inability to identify approvers)
PCI DSS 10.1 - Logging (inadequate logging of approval actions)
📦 Affected Products / CPE 1 entries
openclaw:openclaw