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The vulnerability resides in how OpenClaw handles logging of errors and stack traces. Specifically, when OpenClaw makes requests to the Telegram Bot API, the URL constructed includes the bot token as part of the path, following the format https://api.telegram.org/bot<token>/.... In affected versions, if an error occurred during this process, the full URL, including the sensitive token, was written to logs, crash reports, CI output, or support bundles without any redaction. An attacker with access to any of these logged outputs could retrieve the plaintext token. This allows the attacker to fully impersonate the legitimate bot, gaining complete control over the Bot API interface. The attacker could then read all messages sent to the bot, send messages on its behalf, manage webhooks, and access or modify any data the bot has permissions to see. The exposure is a direct result of failing to sanitize sensitive data from log outputs, a common but critical oversight.
dailycve form:
Platform: OpenClaw
Version: <=2026.2.14
Vulnerability: Token Leak
Severity: Moderate
date: 2026-02-18
Prediction: 2026-02-25
What Undercode Say:
Analytics
The vulnerability was discovered in the NPM package openclaw. Analysis of the issue shows a failure to apply redaction logic to error logs for outbound HTTP requests. The fix involves implementing a sanitizer that scans log strings for the pattern https://api.telegram.org/bot[0-9A-Za-z:_-]+/` and replaces the token segment with a placeholder likeREDACTED. This is a defensive logging practice./var/log/openclaw/`).
<h2 style="color: blue;">Exploit:</h2>
An attacker does not directly interact with the application to trigger this. Instead, they rely on gaining access to existing log files. This could be achieved through:
1. Gaining read access to the server's local log storage (e.g.,
2. Accessing a cloud-based logging or monitoring dashboard (e.g., Datadog, Splunk) if the application logs are forwarded there.
3. Reviewing public CI/CD pipeline outputs if logs are inadvertently exposed.
4. Obtaining a crash report or support bundle that the application generated.
Once the logs are obtained, the attacker can extract the token using a simple `grep` command:
grep -Eo 'https://api\.telegram\.org/bot[0-9A-Za-z:_-]+' /path/to/openclaw.log
Protection from this CVE
- Immediate Upgrade: The primary mitigation is to update OpenClaw to version `2026.2.15` or later, where the logging redaction has been implemented.
- Log Rotation and Access Control: Implement strict access controls on log files. Regularly rotate and archive logs to limit the exposure window.
- Environment Variables: Ensure that the Telegram bot token is stored securely as an environment variable or in a secrets manager, not hardcoded in configuration files that might also be logged.
- Code Implementation: Developers should use a logging library that supports sensitive data redaction. For example, in Node.js:
// Instead of logging the full error object: // console.error('API call failed:', error); // Implement a sanitizer function: function sanitizeLogs(message) { return message.replace(/https:\/\/api.telegram.org\/bot[0-9A-Za-z:_-]+/g, 'https://api.telegram.org/bot[bash]'); } console.error('API call failed:', sanitizeLogs(error.toString()));
Impact
Successful exploitation allows for a complete takeover of the Telegram bot. An attacker can:
Read all private conversations and messages sent to the bot.
Send messages to users, potentially spreading malware or phishing links.
Delete or modify the bot’s commands and responses.
Change the bot’s profile information.
Use the bot as a foothold to launch further attacks against the application’s users or backend systems.
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Sources:
Reported By: github.com
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