U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

PUBLICATIONS

Application Container Security Guide

Published

Author(s)

Murugiah P. Souppaya, John Morello, Karen Scarfone

Abstract

Application container technologies, also known as containers, are a form of operating system virtualization combined with application software packaging. Containers provide a portable, reusable, and automatable way to package and run applications. This publication explains the potential security concerns associated with the use of containers and provides recommendations for addressing these concerns.
Citation
Special Publication (NIST SP) - 800-190
Report Number
800-190
NIST Pub Series
Special Publication (NIST SP)
Pub Type
NIST Pubs

Download Paper

DOI Link

Keywords

application, application container, application software packaging, container, container security, isolation, operating system virtualization, virtualization
Software defined and virtual networks, Risk management, Identity and access management, Cryptography, Cybersecurity and Cloud computing and virtualization

Citation

Souppaya, M. , Morello, J. and Scarfone, K. (2017), Application Container Security Guide, Special Publication (NIST SP), National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, [online], https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.SP.800-190 (Accessed July 28, 2025)

Issues

If you have any questions about this publication or are having problems accessing it, please contact [email protected].

Created September 25, 2017, Updated May 4, 2021
Was this page helpful?