CVE-2026-105445 allowed an attacker who created an account and a personal access token (PAT) to convert that account into an organization and name another user as its owner — with the PAT reassigned to the named owner without changing the secret or obtaining consent.
CVE-2026-105445: how a transferred PAT became a live impersonation token
Docker disclosed a critical vulnerability in Docker Hub — tracked as CVE-2026-105445 — that stemmed from how the service handled personal access tokens during a personal-account-to-organization conversion. In Docker Hub, a PAT "serves as a secret used to authenticate tools and workflows" and "allows you to pull, push, or delete container images." The flaw caused a PAT created by an attacker to be reassigned to the named organization owner without rotating the secret or asking the owner to confirm the change.
Timeline: introduced August 26, 2024; reported and fixed in late 2026
Docker says the vulnerability was introduced on August 26, 2024, when the conversion process began reassigning the personal account PAT to the new owner without revoking or rotating the secret. The issue was reported to Docker on September 30, 2026; Docker confirmed the report and deployed a fix to production in less than four hours. Affected users and organization owners were notified on October 2, and transferred PATs were deactivated on October 8 except for those whose owners explicitly requested to retain them.
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Get a security leadWhat attackers could do with reassigned PATs
Because a reassigned PAT retained the original secret and authentication power, an attacker holding that token could act "within the scope of the token" as the named target at the registry level. Docker explained that, depending on the token’s scope and the target’s permissions, attackers could pull, push, or delete images in the target’s repositories and in organizations where the target had access. Docker treated the issue as a software supply chain risk and "rated it critical," noting that the ability to publish images under a legitimate name increased that risk.
Scope of access and limitations Docker observed
Docker emphasized two limits to the flaw. First, reassigned tokens did not provide Docker Hub web access and did not allow attackers to change account-level settings such as passwords, email addresses, or two-factor authentication settings — actions that might otherwise lock legitimate account holders out. Second, after reviewing activity, Docker says it "found no evidence of exploitation" following an examination of 304,000 pushes made with transferred tokens and analysis of high‑risk public images.
What Docker changed: deactivations, consent, and transfer behavior
As part of remediation, Docker deactivated transferred PATs on October 8 unless the owner explicitly requested to retain them. Docker also altered the conversion behavior: the platform no longer transfers PATs during conversion and it now requests user consent before naming a user an organization owner. Docker additionally instructed that users who did not receive a notification should "assume they were not impacted and did not need to take any action."
What this means for technologists, organization owners, and end users
- Technologists and security teams: Teams that integrate CI/CD pipelines or automation with Docker Hub via PATs should review which tokens they use for automated workflows and the scopes granted to those tokens, since reassigned tokens could, in principle, be used to push or delete images where the token had permission.
- Organization owners and repository maintainers: Owners who were named during conversions should check notifications sent by Docker and confirm whether any transferred PATs were deactivated or retained by explicit request; Docker’s post‑fix behavior requires consent before naming organization owners going forward.
- End users and image consumers: Because Docker classified the issue as a software supply chain risk, consumers of public images — particularly those who rely on "high‑risk" images — should note Docker’s analysis; Docker reported no evidence of exploitation after its review but treated publishing under legitimate names as the reason the flaw was critical.
The record is concrete: a token reassignment bug that persisted for more than a year was discovered, fixed rapidly after reporting, and triggered a sweeping deactivation and policy change. Docker’s steps — deactivating transferred tokens (unless explicitly retained), stopping automatic token transfers during conversions, and requiring consent before naming organization owners — close the specific attack path identified in CVE-2026-105445. Whether further audit or forensic follow-up will surface activity beyond the 304,000 pushes Docker reviewed is a question left to investigators and maintainers of affected registries.
