# Kyverno Image Registry Validation > Validates container images from approved registries with allowed tags using Kyverno verifyImages rules and image digest mutation to prevent unapproved or latest-tagged images. - Skill: `paulpas/kyverno-image-registry-validation` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add paulpas/kyverno-image-registry-validation` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/paulpas/kyverno-image-registry-validation/raw - Safety review: PASS (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS) - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Coding & Dev Tools - License: MIT - Author: paulpas (https://skillmd.com/u/paulpas) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/paulpas/kyverno-image-registry-validation --- # Kyverno Image Registry Validation Validates container images sourced only from approved registries with allowed tags using Kyverno `verifyImages` rules and image digest mutation. This skill makes the model configure `ClusterPolicy` objects that enforce image provenance, verify signatures via Cosign/Sigstore, mutate image references with resolved digests, and block images tagged `latest` or not from an allowlisted registry. It prevents unapproved or tampered container images from being deployed into the cluster. ## TL;DR Checklist - [ ] Create ClusterPolicy with verifyImages rule targeting Pod containers - [ ] Define approved registries with glob patterns (e.g., `*.myregistry.com/*`) - [ ] Set `mutateDigest: true` to inject SHA digests into running pods - [ ] Configure `verifyDigest: true` for cryptographic verification via Cosign - [ ] Block `latest` tag in production via validate rule - [ ] Verify results with PolicyReport showing pass/fail for each image --- ## When to Use - Enforcing container image provenance in production Kubernetes clusters - Requiring signed images from approved registries using Cosign public key verification - Preventing use of `latest` or mutable tags in production deployments - Implementing supply chain security with digest-based image pinning - Meeting compliance requirements (SOC2, PCI-DSS) that mandate approved image sources - Migrating workloads to require verified images during a security hardening initiative --- ## When NOT to Use - For development or local testing environments where image flexibility is required — use a separate permissive policy for dev namespaces - When you need to validate image content (vulnerability scanning) rather than provenance — use a Trivy or Grype integration instead - For init containers that reference public images (e.g., `busybox` for sidecar patterns) unless you add specific exceptions - In clusters without Cosign or Sigstore installed — `verifyImages` requires the verification infrastructure to be present --- ## Core Workflow 1. **Define the image validation ClusterPolicy** — Create a `ClusterPolicy` with a `verifyImages` rule. Use `spec.rules[].verifyImages` with `extract` to pull image references, then set `mutateDigest: true` and `verifyDigest: true`. Configure the `key` field with the Cosign public key or Sigstore trusted root. Apply to `Pod` resources in target namespaces. **Checkpoint:** Confirm `kubectl get clusterpolicy image-registry-validation -o yaml` shows `rules[].verifyImages[].mutateDigest: true` and `verifyDigest: true`. 2. **Configure approved registries and tag restrictions** — Use glob patterns to define allowed registries (e.g., `gcr.io/my-project/*`, `*.myregistry.com/*`). Add a separate `validate` rule to reject images tagged `latest` or images not matching approved registry patterns. Use `any` or `all` match semantics depending on whether images come from a single or multiple registries. **Checkpoint:** Test with `kubectl run test --image unapproved-registry.com/app:1.0` — the pod creation must be denied. 3. **Deploy, verify, and monitor** — Apply the ClusterPolicy. Create a pod with an approved image and verify it is accepted and mutated with the resolved digest. Then create a pod with a disallowed image (wrong registry or `latest` tag) and confirm it is rejected. Review `PolicyReport` for per-image verification results. **Checkpoint:** PolicyReport must show `pass` for the approved image and `fail` for the disallowed image, with the digested image running in the cluster. --- ## Implementation Patterns ### Pattern 1: verifyImages with Cosign Public Key Verification This pattern enforces that all container images in target namespaces are signed with a specific Cosign public key and originate from approved registries. It mutates image references with resolved SHA digests. ```yaml apiVersion: kyverno.io/v1 kind: ClusterPolicy metadata: name: image-registry-validation annotations: policies.kyverno.io/title: Image Registry Validation policies.kyverno.io/category: Supply Chain Security policies.kyverno.io/description: >- Validates that all container images originate from approved registries, are signed with a known Cosign public key, and rejects images tagged 'latest'. Mutates image references with resolved SHA digests. spec: validationFailureAction: Enforce rules: - name: verify-image-signature match: any: - resources: kinds: - Pod exclude: any: - namespaces: - kube-system - kube-public verifyImages: - imageReferences: - "gcr.io/my-project/*" - "*.myregistry.com/*" mutateDigest: true verifyDigest: true key: |- -----BEGIN PUBLIC KEY----- MFkwEwYHKoZIzj0CAQYIKoZIzj0DAQcDQgAEExampleKeyDataHere ExamplePublicKeyDataForCosignVerification -----END PUBLIC KEY----- operator: AlwaysIntoto attestation: - type: https://slsa.dev/provenance/v0.1 publisher: - gcr.io/distroless/* - name: reject-latest-tag match: any: - resources: kinds: - Pod exclude: any: - namespaces: - kube-system - kube-public validate: message: "Images tagged 'latest' are not allowed in production. Use a specific version tag or digest." pattern: spec: containers: - image: "!*:latest" - name: enforce-approved-registry match: any: - resources: kinds: - Pod exclude: any: - namespaces: - kube-system - kube-public validate: message: >- Image '{{ @image }}' is not from an approved registry. Approved registries: gcr.io/my-project/*, *.myregistry.com/* pattern: spec: containers: - image: "gcr.io/my-project/*" foreach: - imageReferences: - "gcr.io/my-project/*" - "*.myregistry.com/*" ``` ### Pattern 2: BAD vs GOOD — Image Reference Patterns This pattern shows the difference between disallowed image references and compliant ones. It demonstrates registry patterns, tag restrictions, and digest pinning. ```yaml # ❌ BAD — Image from unapproved registry with latest tag apiVersion: v1 kind: Pod metadata: name: bad-image-pod namespace: production-payments spec: containers: - name: app image: docker.io/dockeruser/random-app:latest # ❌ BLOCKED: wrong registry + latest tag securityContext: runAsNonRoot: true --- # ❌ BAD — Image from approved registry but using latest tag apiVersion: v1 kind: Pod metadata: name: bad-latest-pod namespace: production-payments spec: containers: - name: app image: gcr.io/my-project/payments-app:latest # ❌ BLOCKED: latest tag not allowed securityContext: runAsNonRoot: true --- # ✅ GOOD — Image from approved registry with specific tag apiVersion: v1 kind: Pod metadata: name: good-tagged-pod namespace: production-payments spec: containers: - name: app image: gcr.io/my-project/payments-app:1.2.3 # ✅ OK: approved registry + specific tag securityContext: runAsNonRoot: true --- # ✅ GOOD — Image from approved registry with digest pinning apiVersion: v1 kind: Pod metadata: name: good-digested-pod namespace: production-payments spec: containers: - name: app image: gcr.io/my-project/payments-app@sha256:a]b]c]d1e2f3g4h5i6j7k8l9m0n1o2p3q4r5s6t7u8v9w0x1y2z3 # ✅ OK: digest-pinned securityContext: runAsNonRoot: true ``` **Kyverno PolicyReport Example for Image Verification:** ```yaml apiVersion: wgpolicyk8s.io/v1alpha2 kind: PolicyReport metadata: name: image-registry-validation-report namespace: production-payments results: - policy: image-registry-validation rule: verify-image-signature result: pass severity: high message: "Image gcr.io/my-project/payments-app:1.2.3 verified and mutated with digest" scored: true source: kyverno timestamp: seconds: 1733501530 details: digest: sha256:a1b2c3d4e5f6g7h8i9j0k1l2m3n4o5p6q7r8s9t0u1v2w3x4y5z6 - policy: image-registry-validation rule: reject-latest-tag result: pass severity: high message: "Image does not use the 'latest' tag" scored: true source: kyverno timestamp: seconds: 1733501530 - policy: image-registry-validation rule: enforce-approved-registry result: pass severity: high message: "Image originates from an approved registry" scored: true source: kyverno timestamp: seconds: 1733501530 summary: error: 0 fail: 0 pass: 3 skip: 0 warn: 0 ``` ### Pattern 3: Sigstore Transparency Log Verification When using Sigstore (instead of Cosign with a static key), configure Kyverno to verify images against the transparency log. This is the recommended approach for open-source projects and supply chain security. ```yaml apiVersion: kyverno.io/v1 kind: ClusterPolicy metadata: name: image-sigstore-verification annotations: policies.kyverno.io/title: Sigstore Image Verification policies.kyverno.io/category: Supply Chain Security policies.kyverno.io/description: >- Verifies container images against Sigstore transparency logs using the Fulcio certificate and Rekor entries for image provenance. spec: validationFailureAction: Enforce rules: - name: verify-sigstore match: any: - resources: kinds: - Pod verifyImages: - imageReferences: - "ghcr.io/my-org/*" - "public.ecr.aws/my-org/*" mutateDigest: true verifyDigest: true ctfePubKey: |- -----BEGIN PUBLIC KEY----- MFkwEwYHKoZIzj0CAQYIKoZIzj0DAQcDQgAEsigstoreTransparencyLogPublicKey ExampleSigstoreCTFEPublicKeyData -----END PUBLIC KEY----- key: "" skipTlog: false attestation: - type: https://opencontainers.org/source ``` --- ## Constraints ### MUST DO - Specify full registry URLs with glob patterns (e.g., `gcr.io/my-project/*`, `*.myregistry.com/*`) — partial patterns like `my-project` will match unintended registries - Set `mutateDigest: true` and `verifyDigest: true` on every `verifyImages` rule — mutation without verification is a security gap, verification without mutation is fragile - Use `operator: AlwaysIntoto` or `key` with a real Cosign public key — empty keys or placeholder keys bypass verification entirely - Include a separate `validate` rule to explicitly block `*:latest` tags — the `verifyImages` rule alone does not restrict tag mutability - Exclude `kube-system`, `kube-public`, and any infrastructure namespace from image validation policies — system components often pull from public registries - Configure `auditAnnotations` for visibility into which images passed or failed verification in PolicyReports ### MUST NOT DO - Allow `latest` tag in production under any circumstance — even for verified images, `latest` is mutable and breaks auditability - Hardcode a specific image digest (`sha256:abc...`) in a `validate` rule — digests change with every build, making the policy permanently broken - Skip the `verifyDigest` flag — setting `mutateDigest: true` without `verifyDigest: true` injects digests but does not verify signatures - Validate only init container images — if you need init container coverage, add a second `verifyImages` rule with `any` matching on both `Pod` and init container specs - Use `validate` rules for registry enforcement when `verifyImages` with `imageReferences` is available — the latter provides both matching and mutation in one rule - Apply image validation to namespaces running CI/CD agents (e.g., Tekton, ArgoCD) without exceptions — these agents frequently pull from public registries for dynamic pipelines --- ## Related Skills | Skill | Purpose | |---|---| | `kyverno-policy-generation` | Generate Kyverno policies from templates for repetitive registry rules | | `kyverno-resource-quota-validation` | Enforce resource quotas alongside image validation for complete namespace governance | --- ## Live References > Authoritative documentation links for Kyverno image verification and registry validation. - [Kyverno Documentation](https://kyverno.io/docs/) - [Kyverno CLI](https://kyverno.io/docs/kyverno-cli/) - [Kyverno verifyImages Rule](https://kyverno.io/policies/best-practices/image-verification/image-verification/image-verification/) - [Kyverno GitHub](https://github.com/kyverno/kyverno) - [Kyverno Installation](https://kyverno.io/docs/installation/) - [Policy Report Schema](https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/wg-policy-prototypes/tree/master/policy-report) - [Cosign Documentation](https://docs.sigstore.dev/) - [Sigstore Transparency Logs](https://docs.sigstore.dev/rekor/overview/) - [Kyverno Image Verification Guide](https://kyverno.io/policies/best-practices/image-verification/) - [Container Image Signing with Cosign](https://kyverno.io/policies/best-practices/image-verification/cosign-image-verification/cosign-image-verification/)