dbcve.org
Docker DesktopApplication · Docker

CVE-2023-5165

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-09-25
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 4.23.0 or later.
See remediation →
90/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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 before 4.23.0 allows an unprivileged user to bypass Enhanced Container Isolation (ECI) restrictions via the debug shell which remains accessible for a short time window after launching Docker Desktop. The affected functionality is available for Docker Business customers only and assumes an environment where users are not granted local root or Administrator privileges. This issue has been fixed in Docker Desktop 4.23.0. Affected Docker Desktop versions: from 4.13.0 before 4.23.0.

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 · high confidence

Docker Desktop before 4.23.0 contains a race-condition-like vulnerability where the debug shell remains accessible for a brief window after Docker Desktop launches, allowing an unprivileged user to bypass Enhanced Container Isolation (ECI) restrictions. This affects only Docker Business customers using ECI in environments where users lack local root or Administrator privileges.

MitigationUpgrade Docker Desktop to version 4.23.0 or later to remediate this vulnerability. Verify ECI functionality remains intact after the upgrade.

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
Docker DesktopApplication
Affected:>= 4.13.0, < 4.23.0

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
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/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. Check Docker Desktop version
    Run 'docker version' or open Docker Desktop and go to About Docker Desktop to see the installed version number
    Affected if The version shown is 4.13.0 through 4.22.x (any version >= 4.13.0 but < 4.23.0)
  2. Verify Enhanced Container Isolation is enabled
    Open Docker Desktop settings, navigate to Resources > Security, and check if 'Enable Enhanced Container Isolation' is toggled on
    Affected if ECI is currently enabled in Docker Desktop settings
  3. Confirm user lacks root or Administrator privileges
    On Windows, check if your user is a member of the Administrators group using 'whoami /groups | findstr -i admin'; on Linux/Mac, check if you have sudo access or are root using 'id'
    Affected if The user account does NOT have Administrator (Windows) or root/sudo (Linux/Mac) privileges on the host machine
  4. Verify Docker Business subscription
    Check Docker Desktop settings under 'Plan' or contact your Docker administrator to confirm the organization has a Docker Business license
    Affected if The installation is under a Docker Business subscription
  5. Confirm ECI is actively protecting containers
    Run 'docker info' and look for 'Enhanced Container Isolation: enabled' in the output, or inspect container runtime settings
    Affected if ECI shows as enabled and containers are running with ECI restrictions in place

You are affected only if Docker Desktop is version 4.13.0 through 4.22.x, ECI is enabled, you are on a Docker Business plan, and your user account lacks local Administrator or root privileges on the host system.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 4.23.0 or later
Fixed in 4.23.0
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Docker Desktop to version 4.23.0 or later to remediate this vulnerability. Verify ECI functionality remains intact after the upgrade.

Recommended fix High confidence

Docker Desktop 4.23.0

  1. 1. Check the current Docker Desktop version by clicking the Docker icon in the system tray and selecting 'About Docker Desktop'
  2. 2. Download Docker Desktop version 4.23.0 or later from the official Docker website (https://www.docker.com/products/docker-desktop/)
  3. 3. Uninstall the current Docker Desktop version via the system's application management interface
  4. 4. Install the downloaded Docker Desktop 4.23.0 or later version
  5. 5. Restart the system to ensure the new version initializes properly
  6. 6. Verify the installation by checking the version in 'About Docker Desktop' and confirming Enhanced Container Isolation is functioning correctly

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Docker Desktop Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,984.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-5165 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2023-5165 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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