CVE-2022-24769

Default inheritable capabilities for linux container should be empty

MEDIUM
5.9
CVSS Score
Published: March 24, 2022 at 12:00 AM UTC
Updated: June 17, 2026 at 04:32 AM UTC
5 products affected across 5 vendorsDebian LinuxFedoraMoby· also runs on 1 platform

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Severity
MEDIUM5.9
Exploit prediction
EPSS 0.5%

Description

Moby is an open-source project created by Docker to enable and accelerate software containerization. A bug was found in Moby (Docker Engine) prior to version 20.10.14 where containers were incorrectly started with non-empty inheritable Linux process capabilities, creating an atypical Linux environment and enabling programs with inheritable file capabilities to elevate those capabilities to the permitted set during `execve(2)`. Normally, when executable programs have specified permitted file capabilities, otherwise unprivileged users and processes can execute those programs and gain the specified file capabilities up to the bounding set. Due to this bug, containers which included executable programs with inheritable file capabilities allowed otherwise unprivileged users and processes to additionally gain these inheritable file capabilities up to the container's bounding set. Containers which use Linux users and groups to perform privilege separation inside the container are most directly impacted. This bug did not affect the container security sandbox as the inheritable set never contained more capabilities than were included in the container's bounding set. This bug has been fixed in Moby (Docker Engine) 20.10.14. Running containers should be stopped, deleted, and recreated for the inheritable capabilities to be reset. This fix changes Moby (Docker Engine) behavior such that containers are started with a more typical Linux environment. As a workaround, the entry point of a container can be modified to use a utility like `capsh(1)` to drop inheritable capabilities prior to the primary process starting.

Affected

Our own answer: ranges merged, affected separated from platform-only, with confidence and review flags.

v < 1.1.2
Affected range stops below 1.1.2, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement
v < 20.10.14
Affected range stops below 20.10.14, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement
linux-linux-kernel (environment)
v < 20.10.14
Affected range stops below 20.10.14, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement

Runs on — not affected

The affected product only carries this flaw when running on these platforms. The platforms themselves are not vulnerable.

CVSS

5.9MEDIUMGitHub_M
Attack Vector
LOCAL
Complexity
LOW
Privileges
NONE
User Interaction
NONE
Scope
UNCHANGED
Confidentiality
LOW
Integrity
LOW
Availability
LOW
Vector?

Quick Info

StatusMODIFIED
CWE
CWE-732

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