diff --git a/Dockerfile.prod.db b/Dockerfile.prod.db
index 3775d476..22dca226 100644
--- a/Dockerfile.prod.db
+++ b/Dockerfile.prod.db
@@ -1 +1,4 @@
 FROM mariadb:latest
+
+# Copy custom MariaDB configuration to disable strict mode
+COPY conf/mariadb-no-strict.cnf /etc/mysql/conf.d/
diff --git a/conf/mariadb-no-strict.cnf b/conf/mariadb-no-strict.cnf
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..38edd696
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conf/mariadb-no-strict.cnf
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+[mysqld]
+# Custom sql_mode for legacy CakePHP compatibility
+sql_mode = ERROR_FOR_DIVISION_BY_ZERO,NO_AUTO_CREATE_USER,NO_ENGINE_SUBSTITUTION