diff --git a/gdbui_server/DockerFile.dev b/gdbui_server/DockerFile.dev
index 6321ffe..7902c71 100644
--- a/gdbui_server/DockerFile.dev
+++ b/gdbui_server/DockerFile.dev
@@ -3,6 +3,9 @@ FROM python:3.10-slim
 # Set the working directory
 WORKDIR /app
 
+# Create a non-root user and group for runtime
+RUN groupadd --system appgroup && useradd --system --gid appgroup --create-home appuser
+
 # Copy only the requirements file first to leverage Docker cache
 COPY requirements.txt .
 
@@ -15,5 +18,10 @@ RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y gdb
 # Copy the rest of the application code
 COPY . .
 
+# Ensure runtime directories are writable by the app user
+RUN mkdir -p /app/output && chown -R appuser:appgroup /app
+
+USER appuser
+
 # Command to run the backend server
 CMD ["python", "main.py"]
diff --git a/webapp/DockerFile.dev b/webapp/DockerFile.dev
index 239ecd6..20b134d 100644
--- a/webapp/DockerFile.dev
+++ b/webapp/DockerFile.dev
@@ -12,6 +12,11 @@ RUN npm install
 # Copy the rest of the application code
 COPY . .
 
+# Use the non-root node user provided by the base image
+RUN chown -R node:node /app
+
+USER node
+
 # Expose the port the frontend runs on
 EXPOSE 5173