Out-of-Bounds Memory Access in Linux Kernel Network Scheduling

CVE-2026-31675

What is CVE-2026-31675?

The Linux kernel is susceptible to an out-of-bounds memory access vulnerability during network scheduling operations. Specifically, when processing packet corruption logic in the 'netem_enqueue()' function, the mechanism for determining an index for modifying the packet data can produce a random value without constraints if the packet length evaluates to zero. This can lead to unauthorized access to memory beyond the allocated boundaries, posing a risk when non-linear packets are transmitted over IPIP tunnels. The vulnerability has been addressed by implementing a check to ensure the packet length is non-zero before executing packet data modifications. As a result, fully non-linear packets will bypass the corruption logic without triggering this issue.

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