What it means
Images are reusable deployment artifacts. One compromised base image can reproduce the same weakness across many workloads and environments.
Why it matters
Image security should begin at source and continue through build, signing, registry, deployment, runtime, and retirement.
Practical focus
- Build from approved minimal bases
- Scan packages, dependencies, and secrets
- Sign and verify provenance
- Rebuild and redeploy instead of preserving drifted instances
Common mistakes
- Scanning only after deployment
- Keeping unsupported base images indefinitely
- Embedding credentials or environment-specific configuration
Certification relevance
This subject appears in or supports the following certification bodies of knowledge: