Container Security at Every Layer: Why Docker's Defaults Fall Short

Docker prioritizes ergonomic defaults over security, leaving containers exposed to privilege escalation and kernel-level attacks—recent CVEs like CVE-2024-21626 demonstrate these risks remain critical. This article reframes container hardening not as an add-on feature but as a systematic removal of insecure defaults across three layers: runtime, image, and daemon configuration. Understanding the difference between isolation and hardening is essential for securing containers in production environments.