BellSoft Survey Finds Container Security Practices Are Undermining Developers' Own Goals

"Container security incidents are becoming a routine reality for software teams, and the tools meant to protect them may be making the problem worse. That is the central finding of a new survey from BellSoft, which reveals that nearly one in four developers has already experienced a container-related security incident, while many organizations continue to rely on practices that expand their attack surface instead of reducing it."

"The survey, conducted among 427 developers, found that 23% have encountered a container security breach. BellSoft notes that the most dangerous phase often comes after vulnerabilities are disclosed but before they are fixed, a window that can last weeks or months while exposed systems remain in production. Despite improvements in container platforms over the last decade, the study suggests that security fundamentals are still poorly understood and inconsistently applied."

"At the core of the problem is a mix of human error, legacy habits, and overly complex tooling. Sixty-two percent of respondents said human mistakes were the biggest contributor to container security issues. Many developers still favor convenience over minimalism: 54% consider shells essential inside base images, and 39% rely on package managers. While helpful during development, these tools significantly increase the attack surface in production by enabling unnecessary components and runtime changes."

A BellSoft survey of 427 developers found that 23% have encountered a container security breach and that the post-disclosure, pre-fix window can leave systems exposed for weeks or months. Human error, legacy habits, and complex tooling contribute heavily, with 62% citing mistakes as the biggest factor. Many teams prioritize convenience: 54% include shells in base images and 39% use package managers, while 55% run general-purpose Linux distributions containing hundreds of unused packages. Each unused package increases the vulnerability surface and forces remediation coordination across thousands of containers, while most teams favor reactive defenses over preventive designs.

Read at InfoQ