Containers are replacing virtual machines for running most of the enterprise software due to their modularity and portability between servers. However, there are some risks associated with containers. One obvious risk is related to distributing containers by cloning them as images. If there is any unpatched vulnerability in a base image, all clones and applications inheriting from the base image will suffer too.
The second and major risk is the default user of the container systems, that is, the root user. If an attacker gains access to a root user, which allows an escape from the container, he can get access to not only inside the other containers, but also to the root privileges in the host operating system. And it can be devastating!
Here are some best practices for securing and deploying containers:
- Users should always...