Security implications for docker container environments deploying images from public repositories : A systematic literature review

Abstract: Because of the ease of use and effectiveness, Docker containers have become immensely popular among system administrators worldwide. Docker elegantly packages entire applications within a single software entity called images, allowing fast and consistent deployment over different host systems. However, it is not without drawbacks, as the close interaction with the operating system kernel gives rise to security concerns. The conducted systematic literature review aims to address concerns regarding the use of images from unknown sources. Multiple search terms were applied to a set of four scientific databases in order to find peer-reviewed articles that fulfill certain selection criteria. A final amount of 13 articles were selected and evaluated by using means of thematic coding. Analysis showed that users need to be wary of what images are used to deploy containers, as they might contain malicious code or other weaknesses. The use of automatic vulnerability detection using static and dynamic detection could help protect the user from bad images.