diff --git a/src/cmd/root.go b/src/cmd/root.go
index 1d9adae..f464c0f 100644
--- a/src/cmd/root.go
+++ b/src/cmd/root.go
@@ -393,6 +393,10 @@ func setUpLoggers() error {
 }
 
 func validateSubIDFile(path string) (bool, error) {
+	if utils.IsInsideContainer() {
+		panic("cannot validate sub-IDs inside container")
+	}
+
 	logrus.Debugf("Validating sub-ID file %s", path)
 
 	file, err := os.Open(path)