Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-31633

Memory Safety in Linux Kernel 6.16.1 – 6.18.23

Published
24 April 2026
Modified
27 April 2026
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 9.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.0047 38th percentile
Risk Priority 71 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2026-31633 is a critical-severity Integer Overflow or Wraparound (CWE-190) vulnerability in Linux Linux Kernel. Its CVSS base score is 9.8 (Critical).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked at the 38th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SA-11 (Developer Testing and Evaluation) and SA-8 (Security and Privacy Engineering Principles) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

CVE-2026-31633 is an integer overflow vulnerability (CWE-190) in the Linux kernel's rxrpc subsystem, specifically within the rxgk_verify_response() function. The issue arises from rounding up the token_len value before performing a length check, which can bypass the validation and allow processing of malformed data. This affects Linux kernel versions prior to the application of the referenced patches, with a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H), indicating critical severity due to its potential for high-impact remote exploitation.

Remote, unauthenticated attackers can exploit this vulnerability over the network with low complexity and no user interaction required. By crafting a malicious response that triggers the integer overflow, attackers can bypass the length check intended to ensure the response fits within a single UDP packet, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution, data corruption, or denial of service with high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impacts.

Mitigation involves applying the upstream kernel patches provided in the stable repository, such as commits 1f864d9daaf622aeaa774404fd51e7d6a435b046, 699e52180f4231c257821c037ed5c99d5eb0edb8, and c1e242beb6b1efc3c286f617e8d940c8fbf2ed41. These fixes address the overflow by additionally checking the unrounded token_len value against the response length (len) before processing. Security practitioners should update affected Linux kernels promptly and monitor for systems using rxrpc, such as those with AFS or related filesystems.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: rxrpc: Fix integer overflow in rxgk_verify_response() In rxgk_verify_response(), there's a potential integer overflow due to rounding up token_len before checking it, thereby allowing the length check to be bypassed. Fix…

more

this by checking the unrounded value against len too (len is limited as the response must fit in a single UDP packet).

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to elevate privileges.
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution Execution
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in client applications to execute code.
T1210 Exploitation of Remote Services Lateral Movement
Adversaries may exploit remote services to gain unauthorized access to internal systems once inside of a network.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2024-49994Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2024-43838Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2023-52857Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2026-46198Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2024-38624Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2024-53161Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2025-22091Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2023-53032Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2026-43254Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2025-21997Same product: Linux Linux Kernel

Affected Assets

linux
linux kernel
6.16, 7.0 · 6.16.1 — 6.18.23 · 6.19 — 6.19.13

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V5.2.6

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

Developer testing and evaluation (static analysis, fuzzing, unit tests) directly finds integer overflow defects before deployment.

Secure engineering principles require use of safe arithmetic constructs or language features that structurally eliminate integer overflow during calculation.

Input validation enforces bounds on values before arithmetic, stopping the conditions that trigger overflow or wraparound.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices directly require use of safe arithmetic, bounds checks, and testing that prevent integer overflows.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

finds

Security testing in development can detect integer overflows before release.

prevents

Secure SDLC mandates input validation and arithmetic checks that prevent integer overflows.

degrades

Application security requirements include bounds checking and safe arithmetic to avoid overflow conditions.

degrades

Secure architecture principles require defensive coding patterns that mitigate integer wraparound risks.

prevents

Secure coding standards explicitly forbid unsafe integer operations and mandate overflow-safe constructs.

References