CVE-2026-40525
CRITICALDescription
OpenViking prior to version 0.3.9 contains an authentication bypass vulnerability in the VikingBot OpenAPI HTTP route surface where the authentication check fails open when the api_key configuration value is unset or empty. Remote attackers with network access to the exposed service can invoke privileged bot-control functionality without providing a valid X-API-Key header, including submitting attacker-controlled prompts, creating or using bot sessions, and accessing downstream tools, integrations, secrets, or data accessible to the bot.
How to fix
TridentStack Control can deploy fixes like this automatically across your Windows, macOS, and Linux fleet. See how it works
Remediation is compiled from vendor and distribution security advisories. Always confirm against the linked source for your exact version and platform.
CVSS v3 Vector
Exploitability
Impact
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
Exploit Intelligence
Moderate risk: more likely to be exploited than 45% of all known CVEs.
References
Related Vulnerabilities
Other CWE-636 vulnerabilities, ordered by exploit likelihood. View all
| CVE | Severity | CVSS | EPSS | Exploited | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2024-43532 | High | 8.8 | 12% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2023-28840 | High | 7.5 | 2.7% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2021-1578 | High | 8.8 | 2.0% | - | - |
| CVE-2023-28842 | Medium | 6.8 | 1.4% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2025-21210 | Medium | 4.2 | 1.1% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2026-53913 | Critical | 9.8 | 1.1% | - | Fix |
Common questions
How do I fix CVE-2026-40525?
Upgrade openviking to 0.3.9 or later.
Is CVE-2026-40525 being actively exploited?
Not that we know of. CVE-2026-40525 is not in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. Its EPSS score of 0.57% is the estimated probability that it will be exploited in the next 30 days. That is higher than 45% of all scored CVEs.
How severe is CVE-2026-40525?
CVE-2026-40525 has a CVSS v3 base score of 9.1, rated critical. CVSS rates the technical impact if the vulnerability is exploited, not how likely that is, so weigh it alongside the exploit-prediction score when you decide what to patch first.
What does CVE-2026-40525 affect?
Published advisories record a fix for openviking (NVD). Only products with a sourced advisory are listed, so treat this as what we can cite rather than a complete inventory.
Embed a live status badge for CVE-2026-40525
Markdown
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TridentStack Control continuously scans your Windows, macOS, and Linux fleet for known vulnerabilities, prioritizes them by severity and active exploitation, and patches them automatically.
This product uses NVD data but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS scores courtesy of FIRST.org (https://www.first.org/epss). Source: CISA KEV Catalog. Data as of 2026-07-14.