# Abusing Docker Socket for Privilege Escalation

<details>

<summary><a href="https://www.twitch.tv/hacktricks_live/schedule"><strong>🎙️ HackTricks LIVE Twitch</strong></a> <strong>Wednesdays 5.30pm (UTC) 🎙️ -</strong> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@hacktricks_LIVE"><strong>🎥 Youtube 🎥</strong></a></summary>

* Do you work in a **cybersecurity company**? Do you want to see your **company advertised in HackTricks**? or do you want to have access to the **latest version of the PEASS or download HackTricks in PDF**? Check the [**SUBSCRIPTION PLANS**](https://github.com/sponsors/carlospolop)!
* Discover [**The PEASS Family**](https://opensea.io/collection/the-peass-family), our collection of exclusive [**NFTs**](https://opensea.io/collection/the-peass-family)
* Get the [**official PEASS & HackTricks swag**](https://peass.creator-spring.com)
* **Join the** [**💬**](https://emojipedia.org/speech-balloon/) [**Discord group**](https://discord.gg/hRep4RUj7f) or the [**telegram group**](https://t.me/peass) or **follow** me on **Twitter** [**🐦**](https://github.com/carlospolop/hacktricks/tree/7af18b62b3bdc423e11444677a6a73d4043511e9/\[https:/emojipedia.org/bird/README.md)[**@carlospolopm**](https://twitter.com/carlospolopm)**.**
* **Share your hacking tricks by submitting PRs to the** [**hacktricks repo**](https://github.com/carlospolop/hacktricks) **and** [**hacktricks-cloud repo**](https://github.com/carlospolop/hacktricks-cloud).

</details>

There are some occasions were you just have **access to the docker socket** and you want to use it to **escalate privileges**. Some actions might be very suspicious and you may want to avoid them, so here you can find different flags that can be useful to escalate privileges:

### Via mount

You can **mount** different parts of the **filesystem** in a container running as root and **access** them.\
You could also **abuse a mount to escalate privileges** inside the container.

* **`-v /:/host`** -> Mount the host filesystem in the container so you can **read the host filesystem.**
  * If you want to **feel like you are in the host** but being on the container you could disable other defense mechanisms using flags like:
    * `--privileged`
    * `--cap-add=ALL`
    * `--security-opt apparmor=unconfined`
    * `--security-opt seccomp=unconfined`
    * `-security-opt label:disable`
    * `--pid=host`
    * `--userns=host`
    * `--uts=host`
    * `--cgroupns=host`
* \*\*`--device=/dev/sda1 --cap-add=SYS_ADMIN --security-opt apparmor=unconfined` \*\* -> This is similar to the previous method, but here we are **mounting the device disk**. Then, inside the container run `mount /dev/sda1 /mnt` and you can **access** the **host filesystem** in `/mnt`
  * Run `fdisk -l` in the host to find the `</dev/sda1>` device to mount
* **`-v /tmp:/host`** -> If for some reason you can **just mount some directory** from the host and you have access inside the host. Mount it and create a **`/bin/bash`** with **suid** in the mounted directory so you can **execute it from the host and escalate to root**.

{% hint style="info" %}
Note that maybe you cannot mount the folder `/tmp` but you can mount a **different writable folder**. You can find writable directories using: `find / -writable -type d 2>/dev/null`

**Note that not all the directories in a linux machine will support the suid bit!** In order to check which directories support the suid bit run `mount | grep -v "nosuid"` For example usually `/dev/shm` , `/run` , `/proc` , `/sys/fs/cgroup` and `/var/lib/lxcfs` don't support the suid bit.

Note also that if you can **mount `/etc`** or any other folder **containing configuration files**, you may change them from the docker container as root in order to **abuse them in the host** and escalate privileges (maybe modifying `/etc/shadow`)
{% endhint %}

### Escaping from the container

* **`--privileged`** -> With this flag you [remove all the isolation from the container](/dashboard/linux-hardening/privilege-escalation/docker-breakout/docker-privileged.md#what-affects). Check techniques to [escape from privileged containers as root](/dashboard/linux-hardening/privilege-escalation/docker-breakout/docker-breakout-privilege-escalation.md#automatic-enumeration-and-escape).
* **`--cap-add=<CAPABILITY/ALL> [--security-opt apparmor=unconfined] [--security-opt seccomp=unconfined] [-security-opt label:disable]`** -> To [escalate abusing capabilities](/dashboard/linux-hardening/privilege-escalation/linux-capabilities.md), **grant that capability to the container** and disable other protection methods that may prevent the exploit to work.

### Curl

In this page we have discussed ways to escalate privileges using docker flags, you can find **ways to abuse these methods using curl** command in the page:

{% content-ref url="/pages/8ixd0jG6lrSZl3hDfnQY" %}
[AuthZ& AuthN - Docker Access Authorization Plugin](/dashboard/linux-hardening/privilege-escalation/docker-breakout/authz-and-authn-docker-access-authorization-plugin.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}

<details>

<summary><a href="https://www.twitch.tv/hacktricks_live/schedule"><strong>🎙️ HackTricks LIVE Twitch</strong></a> <strong>Wednesdays 5.30pm (UTC) 🎙️ -</strong> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@hacktricks_LIVE"><strong>🎥 Youtube 🎥</strong></a></summary>

* Do you work in a **cybersecurity company**? Do you want to see your **company advertised in HackTricks**? or do you want to have access to the **latest version of the PEASS or download HackTricks in PDF**? Check the [**SUBSCRIPTION PLANS**](https://github.com/sponsors/carlospolop)!
* Discover [**The PEASS Family**](https://opensea.io/collection/the-peass-family), our collection of exclusive [**NFTs**](https://opensea.io/collection/the-peass-family)
* Get the [**official PEASS & HackTricks swag**](https://peass.creator-spring.com)
* **Join the** [**💬**](https://emojipedia.org/speech-balloon/) [**Discord group**](https://discord.gg/hRep4RUj7f) or the [**telegram group**](https://t.me/peass) or **follow** me on **Twitter** [**🐦**](https://github.com/carlospolop/hacktricks/tree/7af18b62b3bdc423e11444677a6a73d4043511e9/\[https:/emojipedia.org/bird/README.md)[**@carlospolopm**](https://twitter.com/carlospolopm)**.**
* **Share your hacking tricks by submitting PRs to the** [**hacktricks repo**](https://github.com/carlospolop/hacktricks) **and** [**hacktricks-cloud repo**](https://github.com/carlospolop/hacktricks-cloud).

</details>


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://breached.gitbook.io/dashboard/linux-hardening/privilege-escalation/docker-breakout/abusing-docker-socket-for-privilege-escalation.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.
