@@ -458,6 +458,9 @@ def _create_unverified_context(protocol=PROTOCOL_SSLv23, *, cert_reqs=None,
     context = SSLContext(protocol)
     # SSLv2 considered harmful.
     context.options |= OP_NO_SSLv2
+    # SSLv3 has problematic security and is only required for really old
+    # clients such as IE6 on Windows XP
+    context.options |= OP_NO_SSLv3
 
     if cert_reqs is not None:
         context.verify_mode = cert_reqs
 
@@ -36,6 +36,9 @@ Core and Builtins
 Library
 -------
 
+- Issue #22638: SSLv3 is now disabled throughout the standard library.
+  It can still be enabled by instantiating a SSLContext manually.
+
 - Issue #22370: Windows detection in pathlib is now more robust.
 
 - Issue #22841: Reject coroutines in asyncio add_signal_handler().