CVE-2005-2226

Microsoft Outlook Express 6.0 leaks the default news server account when a user responds to a "watched" conversation thread, which could allow remote attackers to obtain sensitive information.

Published: 2005-07-12 Last update: 2026-06-16 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2005-2226 is rated Moderate Risk (48.6/100): CVSS Medium severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 13.39%, 96th percentile). Core evidence: EPSS ranks this CVE among the most likely to be exploited in the near term. Mandatory action: High exploitation likelihood—assess exposure and prioritize remediation.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2005-2226

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-15 29.35% 13.39% -15.96%
2 2026-06-06 32.27% 29.35% -2.92%
3 2025-08-10 32.27%

Full EPSS history (17 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2005-2226

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
5.0 2.0 MEDIUM
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:L)
Exploitation conditions are straightforward and predictable.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P)
Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:N)
No integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:N)
No availability impact.
10.0 2.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2005-2226

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2005-2226

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
microsoft outlook_express 6.0 cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:outlook_express:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft outlook_express 6.0 cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:outlook_express:6.0:sp1:*:*:*:*:*:*
microsoft outlook_express 6.0 cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:outlook_express:6.0:sp2:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2005-2226

cvelogic Threat Intelligence