Loading story…
Zero Day Initiative disclosed two Docker Desktop for Windows privilege-escalation flaws after Docker rejected the reports as outside its threat model. The first issue, tracked as ZDI-26-258 / ZDI-CAN-27229, affects the extension-manager component and is caused by an exposed dangerous function in Docker Extensions. ZDI said an attacker who can already execute high-privileged code inside a container could exploit the flaw to run arbitrary code on the Windows host as SYSTEM. The advisory lists no assigned CVE and a CVSS 8.2 score, and credits Nitesh Surana of TrendAI Research with the discovery.
A second advisory, ZDI-26-260 / ZDI-CAN-27571, describes an uncontrolled search path issue in the Docker Desktop system/editor endpoint caused by execution of a program from an unsecured location. ZDI said exploitation requires an attacker to first escape the container and execute high-privileged code inside the Docker Hyper-V VM, after which arbitrary code can be run on the host in the context of the current user; the flaw carries a CVSS 7.5 score. The issue was reported to Docker in July 2025 by Nitesh Surana and Nelson William Gamazo Sanchez of TrendAI Research, but was later published as a 0-day after the vendor declined to address it because it depended on prior privileged access.
Mallory correlates global threat intelligence with your attack surface — know if you’re exposed before adversaries strike.
3 events from the most recent confirmed update back to the earliest known activity.
On April 15, 2026, ZDI published advisories for Docker Desktop local privilege escalation flaws including ZDI-26-258 / ZDI-CAN-27229 and ZDI-26-260 / ZDI-CAN-27571. The advisories said the bugs could allow arbitrary code execution on the Windows host after an attacker already had high-privileged code execution in a container or Docker Hyper-V VM.
Researchers Nitesh Surana and Nelson William Gamazo Sanchez of TrendAI Research reported a Docker Desktop privilege escalation vulnerability, tracked by ZDI as ZDI-CAN-27571, to Docker. ZDI states the report was submitted in July 2025.
Docker later rejected the reported vulnerabilities because exploitation required prior privileged access, which it considered outside its threat model. This rejection led ZDI to treat the issues as 0-day disclosures.
Vulnerabilities, threat actors, malware, products, organizations, and breaches Mallory has linked to this story.
4 references tracked. Mallory keeps watching after this page renders.
zerodayinitiative.com
Open sourcezerodayinitiative.com
Open sourcecyberark.com
Open sourcecyberark.com
Open sourceMap indicators from this story to your assets and identify affected systems in minutes.
Every observed campaign, victim, and pivot linked to actors named in this story.
Malware, exploits, and IOCs connected to the activity described here.
YARA, Sigma, and Snort rules deployed to your SIEM as soon as they’re published.
Get matching new stories delivered to your team as they break — not the next morning.
Ask questions about this story and take action on the answers.
Other stories Mallory is tracking that overlap on entities, sources, or topic labels.
German authorities issued advisories for **multiple vulnerabilities in Docker** and a separate **Docker Desktop flaw that allows security measures to be bypassed**, highlighting security risks across both the container engine ecosystem and the desktop management platform. The notices identify Docker broadly as affected in one case, while the other specifically warns that Docker Desktop contains a vulnerability that could let attackers circumvent intended protections. The paired advisories indicate that organizations using Docker in development or production environments may face exposure from both general software weaknesses and a more targeted bypass issue in Docker Desktop. Security teams should review affected versions, assess where Docker and Docker Desktop are deployed, and prioritize vendor guidance and patching to reduce the risk of unauthorized access or weakened container security controls.
Jun 29, 2026
dCERT published advisory `2026-1556` warning of multiple vulnerabilities in **Docker**, followed by advisory `2026-1631` covering **Docker Desktop Model Runner** flaws that can allow **code execution**. The notices indicate that security issues affect both the core container ecosystem and a Docker Desktop component used for model execution, expanding the potential attack surface across developer and workstation environments. The paired advisories highlight a broader risk to organizations relying on Docker tooling: attackers may be able to exploit multiple weaknesses to run unauthorized code on affected systems. Security teams using Docker or Docker Desktop should review the impacted products and versions referenced in the dCERT advisories, prioritize patching, and assess whether developer endpoints or container-management workflows are exposed to these vulnerabilities.
Jun 29, 2026
Docker released security updates for **CVE-2024-41110**, a critical flaw in Docker Engine that can let attackers bypass authorization controls and potentially escalate privileges when **AuthZ authorization plugins** are enabled. The bug is a regression of an issue first addressed in 2019, but the earlier fix was not carried forward into newer Docker Engine releases starting with `19.03`, leaving later versions exposed. Docker Desktop installations are also affected through the bundled engine. The vulnerability can be exploited by sending a specially crafted Docker API request with `Content-Length: 0`, causing the daemon to pass the request to authorization plugins **without the request body** and potentially leading to incorrect allow decisions and command execution. Affected versions include Docker Engine before `23.0.14` and before `27.1.0`, and Docker Desktop before `4.33`; Mirantis Container Runtime and deployments not using AuthZ plugins are not impacted. Defenders were urged to update immediately or, if patching is not yet possible, disable AuthZ plugins and restrict Docker API access to trusted users and systems.
Jul 24, 2026