CVE-2026-24840: Dokploy Auth Bypass Vulnerability

CVE-2026-24840 Overview

CVE-2026-24840 is a hardcoded credential vulnerability affecting Dokploy, a free, self-hostable Platform as a Service (PaaS) solution. The vulnerability exists in the installation script (install.sh) at line 154, where a hardcoded password is used when creating the database container. This critical security flaw means that nearly all Dokploy installations share identical database credentials, leaving them susceptible to unauthorized access and potential compromise.

Critical Impact

Widespread deployments of Dokploy prior to version 0.26.6 are vulnerable to database compromise due to shared hardcoded credentials, potentially exposing sensitive application data across thousands of installations.

Affected Products

• Dokploy versions prior to 0.26.6
• Dokploy installations using the default install.sh script
• Database containers created with the vulnerable installation process

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-01-28 - CVE-2026-24840 published to NVD
• 2026-01-29 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2026-24840

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability falls under CWE-798 (Use of Hard-coded Credentials), a common but severe security weakness that undermines authentication mechanisms. The Dokploy installation script contains a static password value that is used uniformly across all deployments when initializing the database container. This design flaw creates a scenario where any attacker who discovers the hardcoded password—whether through source code review, decompilation, or public disclosure—gains potential access to the database of any vulnerable Dokploy installation on an adjacent network.

The attack requires adjacent network access and low privileges, but once those conditions are met, an attacker can achieve high impact across confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the affected system. Database compromise can lead to data exfiltration, data manipulation, and complete service disruption.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability is the inclusion of a static, unchanging password in the publicly accessible installation script located at https://dokploy.com/install.sh. Rather than generating unique credentials during installation or prompting users to supply their own secure passwords, the script hardcodes database credentials at line 154. This practice violates fundamental security principles of credential management and secrets handling.

Attack Vector

The vulnerability is exploitable from an adjacent network position (such as within the same local network segment or cloud VPC) by an attacker with low-level privileges. The attack scenario involves:

1. An attacker identifies a Dokploy installation on the adjacent network
2. The attacker reviews the publicly available install.sh script to extract the hardcoded database password
3. Using the known credentials, the attacker connects directly to the database container
4. Full database access is achieved, enabling data theft, modification, or destruction

The hardcoded credential vulnerability allows attackers to bypass authentication entirely since the credentials are shared across installations. The installation script available at the Dokploy website contains the static password used for database initialization, making the credentials trivially discoverable through source code inspection. For technical implementation details, refer to the GitHub Security Advisory.

Detection Methods for CVE-2026-24840

Indicators of Compromise

• Unauthorized database connection attempts from unexpected network sources
• Database authentication successes from unrecognized IP addresses within the adjacent network
• Unusual database query patterns or bulk data extraction activities
• Unexpected modifications to database records or schema

Detection Strategies

• Monitor database authentication logs for connections using default or known vulnerable credentials
• Implement network segmentation monitoring to detect lateral movement attempts targeting database services
• Deploy database activity monitoring (DAM) solutions to identify anomalous access patterns
• Conduct periodic credential audits to identify installations using hardcoded or default passwords

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable detailed logging on database containers to capture all authentication events
• Set up alerts for database access from network segments that should not have direct database connectivity
• Implement intrusion detection signatures for known Dokploy database service fingerprints
• Review database connection logs regularly for any signs of credential stuffing or brute force attempts

How to Mitigate CVE-2026-24840

Immediate Actions Required

• Upgrade Dokploy to version 0.26.6 or later immediately
• Change database credentials on all existing Dokploy installations to unique, strong passwords
• Restrict network access to database containers using firewall rules or network segmentation
• Audit database access logs for any signs of unauthorized access prior to patching

Patch Information

Dokploy has released version 0.26.6 which contains a patch for this hardcoded credential vulnerability. The fix is available in commit b902c160a256ad345ac687c87eb092f1fab2c64d. Organizations should update to the patched version as soon as possible. For detailed patch information, see the GitHub Commit Details.

Workarounds

• Manually change the database password after installation before exposing the service to any network
• Implement network-level isolation to prevent adjacent network access to the database container
• Deploy a reverse proxy or firewall to restrict database port access to only authorized application containers
• Consider using secrets management solutions to inject credentials at runtime rather than relying on installation scripts

# Configuration example - Change database password post-installation
# Connect to the database container and update credentials
docker exec -it dokploy-db psql -U postgres -c "ALTER USER postgres WITH PASSWORD 'new_secure_random_password';"

# Update Dokploy configuration to use the new password
# Ensure the application configuration file reflects the new credentials