# CVE-2021-37841: Missing authorization in n/a

> Low-privileged users can compromise Windows containers in Docker Desktop, enabling code execution and data access.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 12 Aug 2021
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-3r4h-x82w-7jgc

## What is CVE-2021-37841?

CVE-2021-37841 is a high-severity missing authorization vulnerability in n/a, published on 12 Aug 2021. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Docker Desktop before 3.6.0 suffers from incorrect access control. If a low-privileged account is able to access the server running the Windows containers, it can lead to a full container compromise in both process isolation and Hyper-V isolation modes. This security issue leads an attacker with low privilege to read, write and possibly even execute code inside the containers.

Weakness: CWE-732 (Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-37841?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Docker Desktop.

## How do I fix CVE-2021-37841?

No fix has been published for CVE-2021-37841 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2021-37841 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-37841 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2024-8695](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-8695/): Code injection in Docker Desktop (critical 9.0)
- [CVE-2024-8696](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-8696/): Code injection in Docker Desktop (high 8.9)
- [CVE-2022-37326](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-37326/): Path traversal in n/a (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2025-3224](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-3224/): Elevation of Privilege in Docker Desktop for Windows during Upgrade due to Insecure Directory Deletion (high 7.3)
- [CVE-2024-6222](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-6222/): Privilege escalation in Docker Desktop (high 7.3)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2021-37841 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2021-37841 is a high-severity missing authorization vulnerability in n/a, published on 12 Aug 2021. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-37841 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: n/a. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-37841/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-37841/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-37841
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-37841
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-37841

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-37841/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.