# CVE-2026-45223: Openclaw Crabbox authentication bypass in coordinator user-token verification

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-45223-openclaw-crabbox-authentication-bypass-in-coordinator-user-token  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-05-11. Updated: 2026-07-14  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-45223 · Severity: high · CVSS 8.8 · Published 2026-05-11

Crabbox, a tool used for managing cloud resources and microVM leases, contains a security flaw in how it verifies user login tokens. An attacker who already has basic, non-administrative access can create a specially crafted token that falsely claims they have administrator rights. If successful, the attacker can gain full control over the system, allowing them to view all active leases, manage resource pools, and force the release or deletion of resources.

Technologies: [Openclaw Crabbox](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/crabbox). Vendors: [Openclaw](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/openclaw).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-45223 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-45223 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-45223?** High severity, with a CVSS score of 8.8, published 11 May 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** Openclaw Crabbox < 0.9.0.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-45223?** A patch was published on 2026-05-09: Fix merged in pull request #64 Junglewise finds every place you run it, drafts the upgrade and applies it once you approve.

**How is CVE-2026-45223 attacked?** It is attacked over the network, in a hosted service.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-45223?** Check whether you run Openclaw Crabbox at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

## Technical details

An authentication bypass and privilege escalation vulnerability exists in Crabbox's coordinator component due to improper validation of signed user tokens (cbxu_). The verifyUserToken() function in worker/src/auth.ts validates the HMAC signature and expiration but fails to reject or strip 'admin' claims within the payload. In deployments where the signing secret (CRABBOX_SESSION_SECRET) falls back to the publicly known or shared non-admin token (CRABBOX_SHARED_TOKEN), an attacker with low-privileged access can manually sign a token containing 'admin: true'. This allows the attacker to reach admin-only routes, granting full access to lease visibility, pool state management, and forced release operations. The issue is fixed in version 0.9.0 by explicitly rejecting user tokens containing admin claims and ensuring the authenticated context is non-admin by construction.

## Affected products

- openclaw Crabbox < 0.9.0

## Timeline

- 2026-05-09: patched: Fix merged in pull request #64
- 2026-05-10: advisory: Release v0.9.0 published
- 2026-05-11: disclosed: CVE-2026-45223 published

## References

- [https://github.com/openclaw/crabbox/commit/46079f6de7f10cf61bc47efebd0c143a41664898](https://github.com/openclaw/crabbox/commit/46079f6de7f10cf61bc47efebd0c143a41664898)
- [https://github.com/openclaw/crabbox/pull/64](https://github.com/openclaw/crabbox/pull/64)
- [https://github.com/openclaw/crabbox/releases/tag/v0.9.0](https://github.com/openclaw/crabbox/releases/tag/v0.9.0)
- [https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/crabbox-authentication-bypass-via-admin-claim-injection](https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/crabbox-authentication-bypass-via-admin-claim-injection)

## Related threats

- [openclaw Crabbox environment variable exposure via wildcard allowlist](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-8634-openclaw-crabbox-environment-variable-exposure-via-wildcard)
- [Openclaw Crabbox privilege escalation in agent ticket endpoints](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-8629-openclaw-crabbox-privilege-escalation-in-agent-ticket-endpoints)
- [openclaw Crabbox authentication bypass via identity header spoofing](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-8621-openclaw-crabbox-authentication-bypass-via-identity-header)
- [openclaw Crabbox path traversal in Islo provider workspace resolution](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-45224-openclaw-crabbox-path-traversal-in-islo-provider-workspace)