CVE-2026-33997

A security vulnerability has been detected that allows plugins privilege validation to be bypassed during docker plugin install. Due to an error in the daemon's privilege comparison logic, the daemon may incorrectly accept a privilege set that differs from the one approved by the user.

Plugins that request exactly one privilege are also affected, because no comparison is performed at all.

Workarounds

If unable to update immediately:

• Do not install plugins from untrusted sources
• Carefully review all privileges requested during docker plugin install
• Restrict access to the Docker daemon to trusted parties, following the principle of least privilege
• Avoid relying on plugin privilege approval as the only control boundary for sensitive environments

Credits

• Reported by Cody ([email protected], PGP 0x9FA5B73E)

If plugins are not in use, there is no impact.

When a plugin is installed, the daemon computes the privileges required by the plugin's configuration and compares them with the privileges approved during installation. A malicious plugin can exploit this bug so that the daemon accepts privileges that differ from what was intended to be approved.

Anyone who depends on the plugin installation approval flow as a meaningful security boundary is potentially impacted.

Depending on the privilege set involved, this may include highly sensitive plugin permissions such as broad device access.

For consideration: exploitation still requires a plugin to be installed from a malicious source, and Docker plugins are relatively uncommon. Docker Desktop also does not support plugins.

CVE-2026-33997 has a CVSS score of 6.8 (Medium). The vector is network-reachable, no privileges required, and user interaction required. 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 (2.0.0-beta.8); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Kodem intelligence

1. What is CVE-2026-33997? CVE-2026-33997 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in github.com/docker/docker (go), affecting versions < 29.3.1. It is fixed in 2.0.0-beta.8.
2. How severe is CVE-2026-33997? CVE-2026-33997 has a CVSS score of 6.8 (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 packages are affected by CVE-2026-33997?
   • github.com/docker/docker (go) (versions < 29.3.1)
   • github.com/moby/moby (go) (versions < 29.3.1)
   • github.com/moby/moby/v2 (go) (versions < 2.0.0-beta.8)
4. Is there a fix for CVE-2026-33997? Yes. CVE-2026-33997 is fixed in 2.0.0-beta.8. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is CVE-2026-33997 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2026-33997 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-2026-33997 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-2026-33997? Upgrade github.com/moby/moby/v2 to 2.0.0-beta.8 or later.