Stack-based buffer overflow in the PowerPoint 4.2 conversion filter in Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2000 SP3, 2002 SP3, and 2003 SP3 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a long string in sound data in a file that uses a PowerPoint 4.0 native file format, leading to memory corruption, aka "Legacy File Format Vulnerability," a different vulnerability than CVE-2009-0222, CVE-2009-0223, CVE-2009-0227, and CVE-2009-1137.
Conclusion & alert: CVE-2009-0226 is rated High Risk (76.7/100): CVSS Critical severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 70.44%, 99th percentile). Core evidence: EPSS ranks this CVE among the most likely to be exploited in the near term. EPSS rose +6.92% over the last day, indicating growing attacker interest. 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.
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 | 2026-06-05 | 63.52% | 70.44% | +6.92% |
| 2 | 2025-11-28 | 66.64% | 63.52% | -3.12% |
| 3 | 2025-10-01 | — | 66.64% | — |
Full EPSS history (26 records total)
CVSS metrics for this CVE.
| Base score | Version | Severity | Vector | Exploitability | Impact | Score source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9.3 | 2.0 | HIGH |
|
8.6 | 10.0 | [email protected] |
| Vendor | Product | Version | Raw CPE |
|---|---|---|---|
| microsoft | office_powerpoint | 2000 | cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:office_powerpoint:2000:sp3:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| microsoft | office_powerpoint | 2002 | cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:office_powerpoint:2002:sp3:*:*:*:*:*:* |
| microsoft | office_powerpoint | 2003 | cpe:2.3:a:microsoft:office_powerpoint:2003:sp3:*:*:*:*:*:* |