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Response snapshot Nov 6, 2026, 17:11 UTC

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VulnerabilityCVE-2026-31778

Linux kernel: ALSA: caiaq: fix stack out-of-bounds read in init_card

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ALSA: caiaq: fix stack out-of-bounds read in init_card The loop creates a whitespace-stripped copy of the card shortname where len < sizeof(card->id) is used for the bounds check.

At a glance

Exploited
Not known
Severity
7.1 High (CVSS 3.1)
Chance of exploitation
Not estimated
Sources
1 source

What to do

Check the vendor advisory for affected versions and fixes.

Read NVD CVE-2026-31778 (opens a new tab)

What happened

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

ALSA: caiaq: fix stack out-of-bounds read in init_card

The loop creates a whitespace-stripped copy of the card shortname where len < sizeof(card->id) is used for the bounds check. Since sizeof(card->id) is 16 and the local id buffer is also 16 bytes, writing 16 non-space characters fills the entire buffer, overwriting the terminating nullbyte.

When this non-null-terminated string is later passed to snd_card_set_id() -> copy_valid_id_string(), the function scans forward with while (*nid && ...) and reads past the end of the stack buffer, reading the contents of the stack.

Continue reading

A USB device with a product name containing many non-ASCII, non-space characters (e.g. multibyte UTF-8) will reliably trigger this as follows:

BUG: KASAN: stack-out-of-bounds in copy_valid_id_string sound/core/init.c:696 [inline] BUG: KASAN: stack-out-of-bounds in snd_card_set_id_no_lock+0x698/0x74c sound/core/init.c:718

The off-by-one has been present since commit bafeee5b1f8d ("ALSA: snd_usb_caiaq: give better shortname") from June 2009 (v2.6.31-rc1), which first introduced this whitespace-stripping loop. The original code never accounted for the null terminator when bounding the copy.

Fix this by changing the loop bound to sizeof(card->id) - 1, ensuring at least one byte remains as the null terminator.

Scores and how they were measured

CVSS base severity

7.1

Version 3.1As of

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H

Measurement source (opens a new tab)

How bad it is if exploited. Not a prediction of exploitation or proof you are exposed.

EPSS probability

Not available

A model's estimate of exploitation in the next 30 days, not certainty or your own risk.

Related technology

Sources

  1. Primary source

    NVD CVE-2026-31778 (opens a new tab)

    NVD record: description, CVSS (the CNA score is preferred), affected products, and publication date. Not evidence of exploitation.

    Published Checked

  2. Primary source

    NVD CVE API 2.0 (opens a new tab)

    The NVD API page that supplied this CVE record.

    Published Date not suppliedChecked

  3. Primary source

    NVD CVE API 2.0 (opens a new tab)

    The NVD API page that supplied this CVE record.

    Published Date not suppliedChecked

Cite this record

For factual claims, cite the primary sources above; cite KEVWire for its compilation, dates, and classifications.

APA

KEVWire. (2026, November 6). Linux kernel: ALSA: caiaq: fix stack out-of-bounds read in init_card (CVE-2026-31778). https://kevwire.com/record/CVE-2026-31778

MLA

"Linux kernel: ALSA: caiaq: fix stack out-of-bounds read in init_card (CVE-2026-31778)." KEVWire, 6 Nov. 2026, kevwire.com/record/CVE-2026-31778.

Chicago

KEVWire. "Linux kernel: ALSA: caiaq: fix stack out-of-bounds read in init_card (CVE-2026-31778)." Last modified November 6, 2026. https://kevwire.com/record/CVE-2026-31778.

Evidence summary (plain text)

Linux kernel: ALSA: caiaq: fix stack out-of-bounds read in init_card (May 1, 2026).
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

ALSA: caiaq: fix stack out-of-bounds read in init_card

The loop creates a whitespace-stripped copy of the card shortname
where len < sizeof(card->id) is used for the bounds check. Since
sizeof(card->id) is 16 and the local id buffer is also 16 bytes,
writing 16 non-space characters fills the entire buffer,
overwriting the terminating nullbyte.
CVSS 7.1 (version 3.1; evidence as of Nov 6, 2026; https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-31778).
Sources:
NVD CVE-2026-31778: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-31778
NVD CVE API 2.0: https://services.nvd.nist.gov/rest/json/cves/2.0?lastModStartDate=2026-11-06T15:21:05.474Z&lastModEndDate=2026-11-06T16:50:56.468Z&resultsPerPage=500&startIndex=0
NVD CVE API 2.0: https://services.nvd.nist.gov/rest/json/cves/2.0?lastModStartDate=2026-11-06T14:41:02.636Z&lastModEndDate=2026-11-06T16:20:56.228Z&resultsPerPage=500&startIndex=0
Record ID: CVE-2026-31778.
Record origin: Ingested record.
AI evidence: Not assessed.
Known exploitation: Not assessed.
Zero-day status: Not assessed. KEV membership alone does not establish zero-day status.
About this data

This record was ingested from a data source. Retrieved: Nov 6, 2026, 16:50 UTC. Ingestion is not an independent editorial investigation.

NVD status: Analyzed. Publication in the NVD is not evidence of exploitation.

A CISA KEV listing documents known exploitation, not necessarily a zero-day; absence from the catalog does not prove a vulnerability has never been exploited.

Technology tags indicate possible relevance, not verified exposure. Confirm the affected product, version, and configuration against your own inventory; KEVWire does not scan your systems.

A personal reading checklist on this device, not verified remediation.

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Record details

Record detail