---
title: "CVE-2026-40525: OpenViking: Unauthenticated remote bot control via OpenAPI HTTP routes"
url: https://erroneo.us/security/cve/CVE-2026-40525/
description: "CVE-2026-40525 (openviking (PyPI)): OpenViking prior to version 0.3.9 contains an authentication bypass vulnerability in the VikingBot OpenAPI HTTP route…"
type: vulnerability-record
section: "Security Digest"
date_published: 2026-04-17
date_modified: 2026-10-08
publisher: erroneo.us
author: erroneo.us Security Desk
cve: "CVE-2026-40525"
kev: false
cvss: 9.1
epss: 0.00762
license: All rights reserved. Quote with attribution and a link.
---

# CVE-2026-40525: OpenViking: Unauthenticated remote bot control via OpenAPI HTTP routes

**Signal:** Critical and remotely reachable. No known exploitation yet, but it is network-reachable without credentials. (Computed from CISA KEV, EPSS and CVSS; not an editorial verdict.)

## Should you act?

- No confirmed exploitation. It is not in CISA’s KEV catalog and CISA’s SSVC assessment records no known exploitation. That can change quickly after a public write-up; re-check if you are affected.
- EPSS 0.8% , percentile 55: FIRST’s model estimates a 0.8% chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 55% of all scored CVEs (moderate). EPSS is a probability, not a verdict.
- Remotely reachable with no login and no user interaction. If the vulnerable service is exposed to the internet, prioritize it.
- Only applies if your dependency tree includes openviking (PyPI) < 0.3.9, fixed in 0.3.9 . Check your lockfile, including transitive dependencies.

## What it is

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 apikey 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.

## Affected packages

- PyPI `openviking` < 0.3.9 → fixed: 0.3.9

## Affected products (CVE record)

- volcengine OpenViking: < 0.3.9

## Severity

- VulnCheck CVSS 4.0: 9.1 `CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N`
- VulnCheck CVSS 3.1: 9.1 `CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N`
- GitHub CVSS 4.0: 9.1 `CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N`

## Exploitation

- CISA KEV: not listed (no confirmed in-the-wild exploitation known to CISA).
- CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation none , automatable yes , technical impact total .
- FIRST EPSS (model of 2026-10-21): 0.76% probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 55.

## Sources

- [github.com](https://github.com/volcengine/OpenViking/releases/tag/v0.3.9)
- [github.com](https://github.com/volcengine/OpenViking/commit/c7bb1676f4d037609f041bf39e4e2bd52e8f9820)
- [GitHub Advisory GHSA-jgq2-vq69-gr6h](https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-jgq2-vq69-gr6h)
- [CVE.org record CVE-2026-40525](https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-40525)
- [NVD entry CVE-2026-40525](https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-40525)
- [github.com](https://github.com/volcengine/OpenViking/pull/1447)
- [vulncheck.com](https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openviking-authentication-bypass-via-vikingbot-openapi)

---
Source page: https://erroneo.us/security/cve/CVE-2026-40525/ · Security Digest: https://erroneo.us/security/ · More: https://erroneo.us/llms.txt