CVE-2025-14740 Docker Desktop for Windows Incorrect Permission Assignment Privilege Escalation Vulnerabilities
Low-privileged attackers can escalate privileges and execute arbitrary code by exploiting insecure directory permissions in Docker Desktop for Windows.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Any signed-in user
- Attackable
- Local or same network only
- Victim action needed
- A user has to click or open something
- Fix
- None listed
What is CVE-2025-14740?
CVE-2025-14740 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Docker Desktop, published on 4 Feb 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Official description
Docker Desktop for Windows contains multiple incorrect permission assignment vulnerabilities in the installer's handling of the C:\ProgramData\DockerDesktop directory. The installer creates this directory without proper ownership verification, creating two exploitation scenarios:
Scenario 1 (Persistent Attack): If a low-privileged attacker pre-creates C:\ProgramData\DockerDesktop before Docker Desktop installation, the attacker retains ownership of the directory even after the installer applies restrictive ACLs. At any time after installation completes, the attacker can modify the directory ACL (as the owner) and tamper with critical configuration files such as install-settings.json to specify a malicious credentialHelper, causing arbitrary code execution when any user runs Docker Desktop.
Scenario 2 (TOCTOU Attack): During installation, there is a time-of-check-time-of-use (TOCTOU) race condition between when the installer creates C:\ProgramData\DockerDesktop and when it sets secure ACLs. A low-privileged attacker actively monitoring for the installation can inject malicious files (such as install-settings.json) with attacker-controlled ACLs during this window, achieving the same code execution outcome.
Weakness: CWE-732
Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-14740?
How do I fix CVE-2025-14740?
No fix has been published for CVE-2025-14740 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.
Is CVE-2025-14740 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-14740 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Sources
Also known as GHSA-wqrh-gcr7-7hj3.