cve 2026 31428

CVE-2026-31428 is a Linux kernel information disclosure vulnerability in the nfnetlink_log subsystem, specifically in the NFLOG netlink attribute handling. The flaw arises from manual construction of the NFULA_PAYLOAD attribute, where the kernel allocates sufficient space for the payload plus alignment padding but only initializes the actual payload bytes. This leaves 1 to 3 padding bytes filled with uninitialized heap data, which are then exposed to userspace over the NFLOG netlink socket. While not a critical remote exploit, this bug demonstrates how small memory-management oversights can lead to real information leaks in production environments. The vulnerability is relevant for Linux system administrators and security professionals monitoring kernel security.