CVE-2000-0979

Exploitation likely. EPSS gives it a 75% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days. A vendor fix is available.

CVSS 2.06.4Medium EPSS percentile99th75% chance in 30 days CISA KEVNot listedNo confirmed exploitation
No public exploit known FixVendor fixNo build named by the sources

Published 2001-01-22Updated 2026-09-23Sources: CVE.org, NVD

NVD CVE.org

What to do

The vendor has published a fix. Version details are below where the sources state them.

Steps

Written by AI from the record

Check if any computer in your business still runs Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows Me with File and Print Sharing turned on.
If you find one, disable File and Print Sharing or disconnect it from any network immediately.
Replace or upgrade that machine to a currently supported operating system, since no patch exists for this flaw.
If you must keep it running for legacy reasons, isolate it on a network with no internet or outside access.

Vendor advisory Some work to apply

Is your organisation exposed?Request an assessment to establish which checks fit your systems.

What it is

From the CVE record

File and Print Sharing service in Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows Me does not properly check the password for a file share, which allows remote attackers to bypass share access controls by sending a 1-byte password that matches the first character of the real password, aka the "Share Level Password" vulnerability.

In plain language

Written by AI from the record

This is a very old Windows file-sharing bug (from the Windows 95/98/Me era) that lets someone skip the share password — but unless you're still running one of those decades-old operating systems, this does not affect you.

Unauthenticated access-control bypass in the Share Level Password check of Windows 95/98/Me File and Print Sharing, where the service only verifies the first character of the password, letting attackers authenticate with a single matching byte.

If you're affected

Unauthorized access to shared files
Read or write to protected folders
Confidentiality loss on old file shares

What is it

Imagine a locked storage room where the guard only checks the first letter of your passcode instead of the whole thing — anyone who guesses that one letter gets in. That's effectively what happened with file sharing on very old Windows versions: a short, wrong password could still open access to shared folders. It only matters today if a business is still running one of those ancient computers.

Who is affected

This matters to you only if you still operate a computer running Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows Me with the File and Print Sharing feature turned on. These operating systems have been out of support for over two decades, so most businesses have none left in use. It's only a real risk if such a machine is reachable over a network.

How urgent is it

There is no evidence this is being actively exploited today, and it only affects operating systems that are no longer in business use. Treat this as low priority — it's a historical issue, not an active threat to a modern small-business environment. No urgent action is needed unless you discover a legacy Windows 95/98/Me system still in operation.

What to do — in detail

Confirm exposure by inventorying all endpoints for Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows Me with File and Print Sharing (Share Level Password access control) enabled. No vendor patch exists, as these OS versions are end-of-life; mitigation is architectural, not a software fix. Disable the File and Print Sharing service or move affected hosts to an isolated, non-routable network segment with no internet exposure. The long-term remediation is decommissioning or migrating these systems to a supported OS. Monitor for any unexpected SMB/file-sharing authentication attempts on legacy segments if such systems must remain temporarily in service.

Technical context

CVSS 6.4 (AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:N) reflects unauthenticated network-based access with partial confidentiality and integrity impact, no availability impact. Weakness is an access-control validation flaw (CWE-Other) in the Share Level Password mechanism, exploitable by sending a 1-byte password matching the first character of the real credential. No public exploit code is on record and the vulnerability is not in CISA's KEV catalog. EPSS scoring shows elevated predicted exploitation likelihood, but given the affected platforms (Windows 95/98/Me) are end-of-life and absent from virtually all current production environments, real-world exploitation risk is negligible today.

This is a general assessment based on public vulnerability data. It does not account for your specific infrastructure — when in doubt, consult a security specialist.