Question 1

What is the EOL Risk Score for RHEL 5?

Accepted Answer

RHEL 5 has an EOL Risk Score™ of 90 out of 100, placing it in the Critical risk band. The score is calculated from four factors: EOL Recency (40/40), Attack Surface (30/30), CISA KEV Exposure (20/20), and Extended Support Availability (0/10).

Question 2

Is RHEL 5 still supported?

Accepted Answer

RHEL 5 is no longer supported — it has passed its end of life date (March 31, 2017). No further security patches will be issued. Upgrade to a supported version or obtain extended lifecycle support.

Question 3

When does RHEL 5 reach end of life?

Accepted Answer

RHEL 5 reached (or will reach) end of life on March 31, 2017. After this date, no security patches or bug fixes are issued by the vendor.

Question 4

What are the security risks of running RHEL 5 after end of life?

Accepted Answer

After end of life, RHEL 5 no longer receives security patches. Any newly discovered CVEs remain unpatched indefinitely. Organizations running EOL software also face compliance violations under SOC 2, PCI DSS, HIPAA, and ISO 27001, which require use of supported software versions.