Horizon Alert
Summary of the vulnerability and why it matters
This vulnerability affects Docker Hub's account management, allowing an authenticated user to gain unauthorized access to another user's repositories by reassigning their own access token. This could lead to the unauthorized retrieval, modification, or deletion of sensitive container images.
- Token reassignment grants unauthorized registry access.
- Protects intellectual property in container images.
- Confirm exposure and assess impact on image repositories.
Attack Path
How an attacker could exploit the issue
An attacker with a personal access token could leverage Docker Hub's account-to-organization conversion feature to reassign their existing token to another user. This allows the attacker to impersonate the other user, gaining the same access to Docker Hub's registry for image manipulation operations.
- Authenticated user with a PAT.
- Account-to-organization conversion feature.
- Unauthorized registry access.
Live Threat
Current exploitation, exposure, and threat context
An authenticated attacker could reassign a personal access token (PAT) to another Docker Hub user. The unchanged PAT could then authenticate as the recipient, allowing the attacker to perform actions such as pulling, pushing, or deleting images within that user's accessible repositories.
- Stored Docker Hub images and access controls.
- Attacker reassigns a controlled PAT to a target user.
- Unauthorized image access, modification, or deletion.
Operational Fix
Recommended remediation, mitigation, and detection steps
This critical vulnerability in Docker Hub's account conversion feature allows an authenticated attacker to hijack personal access tokens (PATs) to impersonate other users. The first practical step is to identify all PATs currently in use, confirm their associated accounts, and assess any potentially compromised repositories. Technical leaders and security teams should coordinate with vendor management and platform teams to address this issue, prioritizing actions based on the exposure and impact of affected accounts and repositories.
- Account owners should audit PATs for unauthorized reassignment.
- Verify all existing PATs and their scopes.
- Plan for PAT rotation and enhanced monitoring.
