CVE-2025-15558 (GCVE-0-2025-15558)

Vulnerability from cvelistv5 – Published: 2026-03-04 16:14 – Updated: 2026-03-05 04:55
VLAI?
Title
Docker Desktop Docker Plugins Uncontrolled Search Path Element Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability
Summary
Docker CLI for Windows searches for plugin binaries in C:\ProgramData\Docker\cli-plugins, a directory that does not exist by default. A low-privileged attacker can create this directory and place malicious CLI plugin binaries (docker-compose.exe, docker-buildx.exe, etc.) that are executed when a victim user opens Docker Desktop or invokes Docker CLI plugin features, and allow privilege-escalation if the docker CLI is executed as a privileged user. This issue affects Docker CLI: through 29.1.5 and Windows binaries acting as a CLI-plugin manager using the github.com/docker/cli/cli-plugins/manager https://pkg.go.dev/github.com/docker/cli@v29.1.5+incompatible/cli-plugins/manager  package, such as Docker Compose. This issue does not impact non-Windows binaries, and projects not using the plugin-manager code.
Severity ?
7 (High)
CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:P/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/AU:N/R:U
CWE
  • CWE-427 - Uncontrolled Search Path Element
Assigner
References
Impacted products
Vendor Product Version
Docker Docker CLI Unaffected: 29.2.0 (semver)
Create a notification for this product.
    Docker Compose Unaffected: 5.1.0 (semver)
Create a notification for this product.
Credits
Nitesh Surana (niteshsurana.com) of Trend Research of TrendAI
Show details on NVD website
To clipboard 

{
  "containers": {
    "adp": [
      {
        "metrics": [
          {
            "other": {
              "content": {
                "id": "CVE-2025-15558",
                "options": [
                  {
                    "Exploitation": "none"
                  },
                  {
                    "Automatable": "no"
                  },
                  {
                    "Technical Impact": "total"
                  }
                ],
                "role": "CISA Coordinator",
                "timestamp": "2026-03-04T00:00:00+00:00",
                "version": "2.0.3"
              },
              "type": "ssvc"
            }
          }
        ],
        "providerMetadata": {
          "dateUpdated": "2026-03-05T04:55:47.099Z",
          "orgId": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0",
          "shortName": "CISA-ADP"
        },
        "title": "CISA ADP Vulnrichment"
      }
    ],
    "cna": {
      "affected": [
        {
          "defaultStatus": "affected",
          "platforms": [
            "Windows"
          ],
          "product": "Docker CLI",
          "vendor": "Docker",
          "versions": [
            {
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "29.2.0",
              "versionType": "semver"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "defaultStatus": "unaffected",
          "platforms": [
            "Windows"
          ],
          "product": "Compose",
          "vendor": "Docker",
          "versions": [
            {
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "5.1.0",
              "versionType": "semver"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "credits": [
        {
          "lang": "en",
          "type": "finder",
          "value": "Nitesh Surana (niteshsurana.com) of Trend Research of TrendAI"
        }
      ],
      "descriptions": [
        {
          "lang": "en",
          "supportingMedia": [
            {
              "base64": false,
              "type": "text/html",
              "value": "\u003cp\u003eDocker CLI for Windows searches for plugin binaries in \u003ccode\u003eC:\\ProgramData\\Docker\\cli-plugins\u003c/code\u003e, a directory that does not exist by default. A low-privileged attacker can create this directory and place malicious CLI plugin binaries (docker-compose.exe, docker-buildx.exe, etc.) that are executed when a victim user opens Docker Desktop or invokes Docker CLI plugin features, and allow privilege-escalation if the \u003ccode\u003edocker\u003c/code\u003e\u0026nbsp;CLI is executed as a privileged user.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis issue affects Docker CLI: through 29.1.5 and Windows binaries acting as a CLI-plugin manager using the \u003ca target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https://pkg.go.dev/github.com/docker/cli@v29.1.5+incompatible/cli-plugins/manager\"\u003e\u003ccode\u003egithub.com/docker/cli/cli-plugins/manager\u003c/code\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u0026nbsp;package, such as Docker Compose.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis issue does not impact non-Windows binaries, and projects not using the plugin-manager code.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e"
            }
          ],
          "value": "Docker CLI for Windows searches for plugin binaries in C:\\ProgramData\\Docker\\cli-plugins, a directory that does not exist by default. A low-privileged attacker can create this directory and place malicious CLI plugin binaries (docker-compose.exe, docker-buildx.exe, etc.) that are executed when a victim user opens Docker Desktop or invokes Docker CLI plugin features, and allow privilege-escalation if the docker\u00a0CLI is executed as a privileged user.\n\nThis issue affects Docker CLI: through 29.1.5 and Windows binaries acting as a CLI-plugin manager using the  github.com/docker/cli/cli-plugins/manager https://pkg.go.dev/github.com/docker/cli@v29.1.5+incompatible/cli-plugins/manager \u00a0package, such as Docker Compose.\n\nThis issue does not impact non-Windows binaries, and projects not using the plugin-manager code."
        }
      ],
      "impacts": [
        {
          "capecId": "CAPEC-38",
          "descriptions": [
            {
              "lang": "en",
              "value": "CAPEC-38 Leveraging/Manipulating Configuration File Search Paths"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "capecId": "CAPEC-471",
          "descriptions": [
            {
              "lang": "en",
              "value": "CAPEC-471 Search Order Hijacking"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "capecId": "CAPEC-640",
          "descriptions": [
            {
              "lang": "en",
              "value": "CAPEC-640 Inclusion of Code in Existing Process"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "metrics": [
        {
          "cvssV4_0": {
            "Automatable": "NO",
            "Recovery": "USER",
            "Safety": "NOT_DEFINED",
            "attackComplexity": "LOW",
            "attackRequirements": "NONE",
            "attackVector": "LOCAL",
            "baseScore": 7,
            "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
            "exploitMaturity": "NOT_DEFINED",
            "privilegesRequired": "LOW",
            "providerUrgency": "NOT_DEFINED",
            "subAvailabilityImpact": "NONE",
            "subConfidentialityImpact": "NONE",
            "subIntegrityImpact": "NONE",
            "userInteraction": "PASSIVE",
            "valueDensity": "NOT_DEFINED",
            "vectorString": "CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:P/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/AU:N/R:U",
            "version": "4.0",
            "vulnAvailabilityImpact": "HIGH",
            "vulnConfidentialityImpact": "HIGH",
            "vulnIntegrityImpact": "HIGH",
            "vulnerabilityResponseEffort": "NOT_DEFINED"
          },
          "format": "CVSS",
          "scenarios": [
            {
              "lang": "en",
              "value": "GENERAL"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "problemTypes": [
        {
          "descriptions": [
            {
              "cweId": "CWE-427",
              "description": "CWE-427 Uncontrolled Search Path Element",
              "lang": "en",
              "type": "CWE"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "providerMetadata": {
        "dateUpdated": "2026-03-04T16:14:32.045Z",
        "orgId": "686469e6-3ff6-451b-ab8b-cf5b9e89401e",
        "shortName": "Docker"
      },
      "references": [
        {
          "url": "https://docs.docker.com/desktop/release-notes/"
        },
        {
          "tags": [
            "third-party-advisory"
          ],
          "url": "https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-CAN-28304/"
        },
        {
          "tags": [
            "patch"
          ],
          "url": "https://github.com/docker/cli/pull/6713"
        }
      ],
      "source": {
        "discovery": "EXTERNAL"
      },
      "title": "Docker Desktop Docker Plugins Uncontrolled Search Path Element Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability",
      "x_generator": {
        "engine": "Vulnogram 0.2.0"
      }
    }
  },
  "cveMetadata": {
    "assignerOrgId": "686469e6-3ff6-451b-ab8b-cf5b9e89401e",
    "assignerShortName": "Docker",
    "cveId": "CVE-2025-15558",
    "datePublished": "2026-03-04T16:14:32.045Z",
    "dateReserved": "2026-02-03T19:51:18.184Z",
    "dateUpdated": "2026-03-05T04:55:47.099Z",
    "state": "PUBLISHED"
  },
  "dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
  "dataVersion": "5.2",
  "vulnerability-lookup:meta": {
    "nvd": "{\"cve\":{\"id\":\"CVE-2025-15558\",\"sourceIdentifier\":\"security@docker.com\",\"published\":\"2026-03-04T17:16:14.763\",\"lastModified\":\"2026-03-09T17:38:15.950\",\"vulnStatus\":\"Analyzed\",\"cveTags\":[],\"descriptions\":[{\"lang\":\"en\",\"value\":\"Docker CLI for Windows searches for plugin binaries in C:\\\\ProgramData\\\\Docker\\\\cli-plugins, a directory that does not exist by default. A low-privileged attacker can create this directory and place malicious CLI plugin binaries (docker-compose.exe, docker-buildx.exe, etc.) that are executed when a victim user opens Docker Desktop or invokes Docker CLI plugin features, and allow privilege-escalation if the docker\u00a0CLI is executed as a privileged user.\\n\\nThis issue affects Docker CLI: through 29.1.5 and Windows binaries acting as a CLI-plugin manager using the  github.com/docker/cli/cli-plugins/manager https://pkg.go.dev/github.com/docker/cli@v29.1.5+incompatible/cli-plugins/manager \u00a0package, such as Docker Compose.\\n\\nThis issue does not impact non-Windows binaries, and projects not using the plugin-manager code.\"}],\"metrics\":{\"cvssMetricV40\":[{\"source\":\"security@docker.com\",\"type\":\"Secondary\",\"cvssData\":{\"version\":\"4.0\",\"vectorString\":\"CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:P/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:N/R:U/V:X/RE:X/U:X\",\"baseScore\":7.0,\"baseSeverity\":\"HIGH\",\"attackVector\":\"LOCAL\",\"attackComplexity\":\"LOW\",\"attackRequirements\":\"NONE\",\"privilegesRequired\":\"LOW\",\"userInteraction\":\"PASSIVE\",\"vulnConfidentialityImpact\":\"HIGH\",\"vulnIntegrityImpact\":\"HIGH\",\"vulnAvailabilityImpact\":\"HIGH\",\"subConfidentialityImpact\":\"NONE\",\"subIntegrityImpact\":\"NONE\",\"subAvailabilityImpact\":\"NONE\",\"exploitMaturity\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"confidentialityRequirement\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"integrityRequirement\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"availabilityRequirement\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"modifiedAttackVector\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"modifiedAttackComplexity\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"modifiedAttackRequirements\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"modifiedPrivilegesRequired\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"modifiedUserInteraction\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"modifiedVulnConfidentialityImpact\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"modifiedVulnIntegrityImpact\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"modifiedVulnAvailabilityImpact\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"modifiedSubConfidentialityImpact\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"modifiedSubIntegrityImpact\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"modifiedSubAvailabilityImpact\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"Safety\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"Automatable\":\"NO\",\"Recovery\":\"USER\",\"valueDensity\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"vulnerabilityResponseEffort\":\"NOT_DEFINED\",\"providerUrgency\":\"NOT_DEFINED\"}}],\"cvssMetricV31\":[{\"source\":\"nvd@nist.gov\",\"type\":\"Primary\",\"cvssData\":{\"version\":\"3.1\",\"vectorString\":\"CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H\",\"baseScore\":8.0,\"baseSeverity\":\"HIGH\",\"attackVector\":\"NETWORK\",\"attackComplexity\":\"LOW\",\"privilegesRequired\":\"LOW\",\"userInteraction\":\"REQUIRED\",\"scope\":\"UNCHANGED\",\"confidentialityImpact\":\"HIGH\",\"integrityImpact\":\"HIGH\",\"availabilityImpact\":\"HIGH\"},\"exploitabilityScore\":2.1,\"impactScore\":5.9}]},\"weaknesses\":[{\"source\":\"security@docker.com\",\"type\":\"Secondary\",\"description\":[{\"lang\":\"en\",\"value\":\"CWE-427\"}]}],\"configurations\":[{\"operator\":\"AND\",\"nodes\":[{\"operator\":\"OR\",\"negate\":false,\"cpeMatch\":[{\"vulnerable\":true,\"criteria\":\"cpe:2.3:a:docker:command_line_interface:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*\",\"versionEndIncluding\":\"29.1.5\",\"matchCriteriaId\":\"C1EE5991-A4E4-4B51-BA38-91C8C71D0B75\"}]},{\"operator\":\"OR\",\"negate\":false,\"cpeMatch\":[{\"vulnerable\":false,\"criteria\":\"cpe:2.3:o:microsoft:windows:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*\",\"matchCriteriaId\":\"A2572D17-1DE6-457B-99CC-64AFD54487EA\"}]}]}],\"references\":[{\"url\":\"https://docs.docker.com/desktop/release-notes/\",\"source\":\"security@docker.com\",\"tags\":[\"Release Notes\"]},{\"url\":\"https://github.com/docker/cli/pull/6713\",\"source\":\"security@docker.com\",\"tags\":[\"Issue Tracking\",\"Patch\"]},{\"url\":\"https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-CAN-28304/\",\"source\":\"security@docker.com\",\"tags\":[\"Not Applicable\"]}]}}",
    "vulnrichment": {
      "containers": "{\"adp\": [{\"title\": \"CISA ADP Vulnrichment\", \"metrics\": [{\"other\": {\"type\": \"ssvc\", \"content\": {\"id\": \"CVE-2025-15558\", \"role\": \"CISA Coordinator\", \"options\": [{\"Exploitation\": \"none\"}, {\"Automatable\": \"no\"}, {\"Technical Impact\": \"total\"}], \"version\": \"2.0.3\", \"timestamp\": \"2026-03-04T17:48:25.604550Z\"}}}], \"providerMetadata\": {\"orgId\": \"134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0\", \"shortName\": \"CISA-ADP\", \"dateUpdated\": \"2026-03-04T17:49:59.078Z\"}}], \"cna\": {\"title\": \"Docker Desktop Docker Plugins Uncontrolled Search Path Element Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability\", \"source\": {\"discovery\": \"EXTERNAL\"}, \"credits\": [{\"lang\": \"en\", \"type\": \"finder\", \"value\": \"Nitesh Surana (niteshsurana.com) of Trend Research of TrendAI\"}], \"impacts\": [{\"capecId\": \"CAPEC-38\", \"descriptions\": [{\"lang\": \"en\", \"value\": \"CAPEC-38 Leveraging/Manipulating Configuration File Search Paths\"}]}, {\"capecId\": \"CAPEC-471\", \"descriptions\": [{\"lang\": \"en\", \"value\": \"CAPEC-471 Search Order Hijacking\"}]}, {\"capecId\": \"CAPEC-640\", \"descriptions\": [{\"lang\": \"en\", \"value\": \"CAPEC-640 Inclusion of Code in Existing Process\"}]}], \"metrics\": [{\"format\": \"CVSS\", \"cvssV4_0\": {\"Safety\": \"NOT_DEFINED\", \"version\": \"4.0\", \"Recovery\": \"USER\", \"baseScore\": 7, \"Automatable\": \"NO\", \"attackVector\": \"LOCAL\", \"baseSeverity\": \"HIGH\", \"valueDensity\": \"NOT_DEFINED\", \"vectorString\": \"CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:P/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/AU:N/R:U\", \"exploitMaturity\": \"NOT_DEFINED\", \"providerUrgency\": \"NOT_DEFINED\", \"userInteraction\": \"PASSIVE\", \"attackComplexity\": \"LOW\", \"attackRequirements\": \"NONE\", \"privilegesRequired\": \"LOW\", \"subIntegrityImpact\": \"NONE\", \"vulnIntegrityImpact\": \"HIGH\", \"subAvailabilityImpact\": \"NONE\", \"vulnAvailabilityImpact\": \"HIGH\", \"subConfidentialityImpact\": \"NONE\", \"vulnConfidentialityImpact\": \"HIGH\", \"vulnerabilityResponseEffort\": \"NOT_DEFINED\"}, \"scenarios\": [{\"lang\": \"en\", \"value\": \"GENERAL\"}]}], \"affected\": [{\"vendor\": \"Docker\", \"product\": \"Docker CLI\", \"versions\": [{\"status\": \"unaffected\", \"version\": \"29.2.0\", \"versionType\": \"semver\"}], \"platforms\": [\"Windows\"], \"defaultStatus\": \"affected\"}, {\"vendor\": \"Docker\", \"product\": \"Compose\", \"versions\": [{\"status\": \"unaffected\", \"version\": \"5.1.0\", \"versionType\": \"semver\"}], \"platforms\": [\"Windows\"], \"defaultStatus\": \"unaffected\"}], \"references\": [{\"url\": \"https://docs.docker.com/desktop/release-notes/\"}, {\"url\": \"https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-CAN-28304/\", \"tags\": [\"third-party-advisory\"]}, {\"url\": \"https://github.com/docker/cli/pull/6713\", \"tags\": [\"patch\"]}], \"x_generator\": {\"engine\": \"Vulnogram 0.2.0\"}, \"descriptions\": [{\"lang\": \"en\", \"value\": \"Docker CLI for Windows searches for plugin binaries in C:\\\\ProgramData\\\\Docker\\\\cli-plugins, a directory that does not exist by default. A low-privileged attacker can create this directory and place malicious CLI plugin binaries (docker-compose.exe, docker-buildx.exe, etc.) that are executed when a victim user opens Docker Desktop or invokes Docker CLI plugin features, and allow privilege-escalation if the docker\\u00a0CLI is executed as a privileged user.\\n\\nThis issue affects Docker CLI: through 29.1.5 and Windows binaries acting as a CLI-plugin manager using the  github.com/docker/cli/cli-plugins/manager https://pkg.go.dev/github.com/docker/cli@v29.1.5+incompatible/cli-plugins/manager \\u00a0package, such as Docker Compose.\\n\\nThis issue does not impact non-Windows binaries, and projects not using the plugin-manager code.\", \"supportingMedia\": [{\"type\": \"text/html\", \"value\": \"\u003cp\u003eDocker CLI for Windows searches for plugin binaries in \u003ccode\u003eC:\\\\ProgramData\\\\Docker\\\\cli-plugins\u003c/code\u003e, a directory that does not exist by default. A low-privileged attacker can create this directory and place malicious CLI plugin binaries (docker-compose.exe, docker-buildx.exe, etc.) that are executed when a victim user opens Docker Desktop or invokes Docker CLI plugin features, and allow privilege-escalation if the \u003ccode\u003edocker\u003c/code\u003e\u0026nbsp;CLI is executed as a privileged user.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis issue affects Docker CLI: through 29.1.5 and Windows binaries acting as a CLI-plugin manager using the \u003ca target=\\\"_blank\\\" rel=\\\"nofollow\\\" href=\\\"https://pkg.go.dev/github.com/docker/cli@v29.1.5+incompatible/cli-plugins/manager\\\"\u003e\u003ccode\u003egithub.com/docker/cli/cli-plugins/manager\u003c/code\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u0026nbsp;package, such as Docker Compose.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis issue does not impact non-Windows binaries, and projects not using the plugin-manager code.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\", \"base64\": false}]}], \"problemTypes\": [{\"descriptions\": [{\"lang\": \"en\", \"type\": \"CWE\", \"cweId\": \"CWE-427\", \"description\": \"CWE-427 Uncontrolled Search Path Element\"}]}], \"providerMetadata\": {\"orgId\": \"686469e6-3ff6-451b-ab8b-cf5b9e89401e\", \"shortName\": \"Docker\", \"dateUpdated\": \"2026-03-04T16:14:32.045Z\"}}}",
      "cveMetadata": "{\"cveId\": \"CVE-2025-15558\", \"state\": \"PUBLISHED\", \"dateUpdated\": \"2026-03-05T04:55:47.099Z\", \"dateReserved\": \"2026-02-03T19:51:18.184Z\", \"assignerOrgId\": \"686469e6-3ff6-451b-ab8b-cf5b9e89401e\", \"datePublished\": \"2026-03-04T16:14:32.045Z\", \"assignerShortName\": \"Docker\"}",
      "dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
      "dataVersion": "5.2"
    }
  }
}


Log in or create an account to share your comment.




Tags
Taxonomy of the tags.




Sightings

Author Source Type Date

Nomenclature

  • Seen: The vulnerability was mentioned, discussed, or observed by the user.
  • Confirmed: The vulnerability has been validated from an analyst's perspective.
  • Published Proof of Concept: A public proof of concept is available for this vulnerability.
  • Exploited: The vulnerability was observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
  • Patched: The vulnerability was observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
  • Not exploited: The vulnerability was not observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
  • Not confirmed: The user expressed doubt about the validity of the vulnerability.
  • Not patched: The vulnerability was not observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.



Detection rules are retrieved from Rulezet.