Is SSL/HTTPS Needed Between Docker Containers on the Same Network? As the title of the questions asks, is it important/needed to have ssl/https working between docker containers on the same network?
Our setup is an Nginx container that proxies two Tomcat containers.
The Nginx container performs ssl termination for the internet cloud.
Then the http request is forwarded to one of two tomcat instances in the same docker network.
For security/safety should the communication between the Nginx container and the two Tomcat containers happen over ssl?
Thank you for your time.
Generally - no, I don't think you need TLS between your reverse proxy and service containers within same Docker network (or possibly 2 Docker networks: 1 internal for workers, 1 with internet access where reverse proxy sits and bridges the gap into internal network).
A wider answer would primarily depend on whether you trust your Docker host and services on it. Then consider how containers address each other, do they need to leave docker network (like public name resolution) at any time. And what you'd be looking for from TLS: identity verification or transport encryption. Each of those considerations would have some caveats.