Executive brief
OpenClaw is a bot framework that supports Telegram integration via webhooks. When webhook mode is enabled but the secret token is not configured, the application accepts Telegram webhook requests without validating their authenticity. An attacker with network access to the webhook endpoint can forge messages to appear as if they came from Telegram, potentially triggering unintended bot actions.
Technical details
This is an authentication bypass vulnerability in OpenClaw's Telegram webhook handler. The vulnerable code fails to validate the X-Telegram-Bot-Api-Secret-Token header when the channels.telegram.webhookSecret configuration parameter is not set. An attacker with network access to the webhook endpoint can craft HTTP POST requests with forged Telegram updates (spoofing sender IDs, message content, etc.) that are processed by the bot as if they originated from Telegram's servers. The vulnerability only affects deployments where Telegram webhook mode is explicitly enabled via channels.telegram.webhookUrl configuration. Patches are available in version 2026.2.1 and later, which enforce validation of the secret token and bind the webhook listener to localhost by default.
Affected products
- OpenClaw OpenClaw <= 2026.1.30
Timeline
- 2026-02-14: disclosed
- 2026-02-17: patched