CVE-2026-45397

Vulnerability Type: Information Disclosure / Missing Authentication
Severity: Medium
Component: backend/open_webui/routers/retrieval.py, get_status() (GET /)
Affected Endpoint: GET /api/v1/retrieval/
Affected Version: Open WebUI main branch, confirmed unpatched through v0.9.2
Authentication Required: None, internet-facing with zero credentials
CVSSv3.1 Score: 5.3 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N)

GET /api/v1/retrieval/ returns live RAG pipeline configuration to any unauthenticated HTTP client. No Authorization header, cookie, or API key is required. Every adjacent endpoint on the same router (/embedding, /config) is correctly guarded by get_admin_user making this a targeted omission.

Root Cause

backend/open_webui/routers/retrieval.py:262

@router.get('/')
async def get_status(request: Request):   # ← no Depends(get_verified_user)
    return {
        'status': True,
        'CHUNK_SIZE': request.app.state.config.CHUNK_SIZE,
        'CHUNK_OVERLAP': request.app.state.config.CHUNK_OVERLAP,
        'RAG_TEMPLATE': request.app.state.config.RAG_TEMPLATE,
        'RAG_EMBEDDING_ENGINE': request.app.state.config.RAG_EMBEDDING_ENGINE,
        'RAG_EMBEDDING_MODEL': request.app.state.config.RAG_EMBEDDING_MODEL,
        'RAG_RERANKING_MODEL': request.app.state.config.RAG_RERANKING_MODEL,
        'RAG_EMBEDDING_BATCH_SIZE': request.app.state.config.RAG_EMBEDDING_BATCH_SIZE,
        'ENABLE_ASYNC_EMBEDDING': request.app.state.config.ENABLE_ASYNC_EMBEDDING,
        'RAG_EMBEDDING_CONCURRENT_REQUESTS': request.app.state.config.RAG_EMBEDDING_CONCURRENT_REQUESTS,
    }

Compare with every adjacent endpoint on the same router:

@router.get('/embedding')
async def get_embedding_config(request: Request, user=Depends(get_admin_user)):  # ✅

@router.get('/config')
async def get_rag_config(request: Request, user=Depends(get_admin_user)):        # ✅

Proof Of Concept, No Token Required

curl -s http://TARGET/api/v1/retrieval/

{
  "status": true,
  "CHUNK_SIZE": 1000,
  "CHUNK_OVERLAP": 100,
  "RAG_TEMPLATE": "### Task:\nRespond to the user query using the provided context...\n<context>\n{{CONTEXT}}\n</context>",
  "RAG_EMBEDDING_ENGINE": "",
  "RAG_EMBEDDING_MODEL": "sentence-transformers/all-MiniLM-L6-v2",
  "RAG_RERANKING_MODEL": "",
  "RAG_EMBEDDING_BATCH_SIZE": 1,
  "ENABLE_ASYNC_EMBEDDING": true,
  "RAG_EMBEDDING_CONCURRENT_REQUESTS": 0
}

Disclosed Information and Its Value to an Attacker

Attack Scenario

1. Attacker sends one unauthenticated HTTP GET to /api/v1/retrieval/.
2. Response reveals the embedding model and chunking parameters.
3. Attacker uses the exact chunk size/overlap to craft RAG poisoning payloads that are guaranteed to be retrieved.

1. RAG template disclosure
2. Infrastructure fingerprinting, embedding engine and model name reveal the AI stack to an internet scanner
3. RAG attack surface mapping, chunk parameters enable precise calculation of retrieval boundaries
4. Zero-effort recon, no brute force, no credentials, no rate-limit concern. Single request from any IP.

A critical operation is accessible without requiring any authentication. Typical impact: any user can invoke the privileged function.

CVE-2026-45397 has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium). The vector is network-reachable, no privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (0.9.5); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Kodem intelligence

Add get_verified_user dependency (or get_admin_user for stricter control):

# BEFORE (vulnerable)
@router.get('/')
async def get_status(request: Request):


# AFTER
@router.get('/')
async def get_status(request: Request, user=Depends(get_verified_user)):

1. What is CVE-2026-45397? CVE-2026-45397 is a medium-severity missing authentication for critical function vulnerability in open-webui (pip), affecting versions < 0.9.5. It is fixed in 0.9.5. A critical operation is accessible without requiring any authentication.
2. How severe is CVE-2026-45397? CVE-2026-45397 has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
3. Which versions of open-webui are affected by CVE-2026-45397? open-webui (pip) versions < 0.9.5 is affected.
4. Is there a fix for CVE-2026-45397? Yes. CVE-2026-45397 is fixed in 0.9.5. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is CVE-2026-45397 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2026-45397 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
6. What actually determines whether CVE-2026-45397 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
7. How do I fix CVE-2026-45397? Upgrade open-webui to 0.9.5 or later.