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DockerApplication

CVE-2021-3162

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-01-15
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.5.0.0 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Docker Desktop Community before 2.5.0.0 on macOS mishandles certificate checking, leading to local privilege escalation.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · moderate confidence

Docker Desktop Community versions prior to 2.5.0.0 on macOS contain a vulnerability in certificate validation logic. This flaw allows an authenticated local user to escalate privileges by exploiting improper certificate checking, potentially executing code or gaining elevated access on the affected system.

MitigationUpgrade Docker Desktop Community to version 2.5.0.0 or later on macOS systems. This is a local privilege escalation vulnerability requiring authenticated local access.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
DockerApplication
Affected:< 2.5.0.0

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Verify Docker Desktop is installed on macOS
    Run 'ls /Applications | grep -i docker' or check for Docker.app in /Applications folder. Alternatively, run 'docker --version' to see if Docker CLI can connect to a Docker Desktop instance.
    Affected if Docker Desktop is not found in Applications or Docker CLI returns no output indicating no running Docker Desktop instance
  2. Check the installed Docker Desktop version
    On macOS, open Docker Desktop and go to 'Docker Desktop' menu > 'About Docker Desktop' to view the version number. Alternatively, run: 'defaults read /Applications/Docker.app/Contents/Info.plist CFBundleShortVersionString' or check '~/Library/Application Support/Docker/Docker Desktop.plist' for the version key.
    Affected if The displayed version is any version prior to 2.5.0.0 (e.g., 2.4.0.0, 2.3.0.3, etc.)
  3. Confirm the platform is macOS
    Run 'uname -s' and verify the output is 'Darwin', or check System Preferences > About > System Report > Software > macOS version.
    Affected if The operating system is macOS and the Docker Desktop version is below 2.5.0.0

You are affected if Docker Desktop Community is installed on macOS and the installed version is lower than 2.5.0.0.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Upgrade available Upgrade to 2.5.0.0 or later
Fixed in 2.5.0.0
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Docker Desktop Community to version 2.5.0.0 or later on macOS systems. This is a local privilege escalation vulnerability requiring authenticated local access.

Fix this in Docker Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,060
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,696.

Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-3162 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data