bitlocker

Microsoft’s TPM 2.0 requirement for Windows 11, announced in 2021 and still enforced in current Windows 11 system requirements, made Trusted Platform Modules a household nuisance by turning a quiet security component into a gatekeeper for OS upgrades. That was the wrong introduction to a...

Microsoft’s original Windows Secure Boot certificates, issued in 2011 and embedded across years of PCs, begin expiring in June 2026, forcing Microsoft, OEMs, administrators, and some users to move devices to newer 2023 certificate authorities before boot-level security protections fall behind...

Microsoft is warning Windows 11 users and IT administrators in May 2026 to update Secure Boot certificates before 2011-era Microsoft certificates begin expiring in June 2026, with additional expirations stretching into October, so supported PCs can keep receiving boot-level security protections...

Microsoft’s 2011-era Secure Boot certificates begin expiring on June 24, 2026, and Windows PCs that have not moved to the 2023 certificate chain should still boot, but they may lose future boot-level security protections and eventually hit upgrade or servicing barriers. That is the important...

Microsoft has issued temporary mitigation guidance for YellowKey, a publicly disclosed BitLocker security-feature bypass tracked as CVE-2026-45585, after a researcher demonstrated that some Windows 11 and Windows Server systems could expose encrypted drives through Windows Recovery Environment...

Microsoft is replacing the original 2011 Secure Boot certificate chain across Windows PCs and servers before certificates begin expiring in June 2026 and continue expiring into October, affecting supported Windows 10, Windows 11, and Windows Server systems that still trust those aging boot...

Microsoft acknowledged the publicly disclosed YellowKey BitLocker bypass on May 20, 2026, assigning it CVE-2026-45585 and publishing mitigations for affected Windows 11 and Windows Server 2025 systems rather than a full security update. The company’s response is technically useful, but it also...

Microsoft has published CVE-2026-45585 as a Windows BitLocker security feature bypass vulnerability, with mitigation guidance that tells administrators to mount each device’s Windows Recovery Environment image, remove an autofstx.exe entry from WinRE’s BootExecute registry value, commit the...

Windows 11 can still be configured in 2026 as a mostly local, Microsoft-minimized desktop, but doing so now means deliberately working around setup defaults, replacing cloud hooks, disabling promotions, and accepting that Microsoft may close some of those exits in future builds. The interesting...

Microsoft’s May 12, 2026 Windows 11 security update KB5089549 fixes a BitLocker recovery problem caused by April boot-file changes, but Microsoft added a May 15 warning that some PCs with cramped EFI System Partitions may fail installation with error 0x800f0922. That is the most Windows update...

Microsoft’s May 12, 2026 Windows 11 update KB5089549 fixes a BitLocker recovery prompt bug for Windows 11 24H2 and 25H2 systems, after April’s security update could send certain enterprise-managed encrypted devices into recovery on first restart. The fix matters because BitLocker failures are...

Microsoft fixed a Windows 11 BitLocker recovery bug on May 12, 2026, after April’s security updates caused some managed PCs to ask for recovery keys at first reboot when they used a specific, discouraged TPM validation Group Policy configuration. The narrowness of the bug is the point, not an...

Nightmare-Eclipse released YellowKey on May 12, 2026, a public proof-of-concept that reportedly bypasses BitLocker on affected Windows 11, Windows Server 2022, and Windows Server 2025 systems by abusing Windows Recovery Environment behavior to unlock encrypted drives without the user’s recovery...

Microsoft released Windows 11 cumulative updates KB5089549 and KB5087420 on May 12, 2026, moving versions 25H2 and 24H2 to builds 26200.8457 and 26100.8457, and version 23H2 to build 22631.7079, across its regular Patch Tuesday servicing channels. The headline is security, but the story is...

Microsoft released Windows 10 KB5087544 on May 12, 2026, as the May Patch Tuesday cumulative security update for Windows 10 22H2 ESU systems, raising supported 22H2 machines to build 19045.7291 and adding new Secure Boot status reporting in the Windows Security app. The update is not a feature...

Microsoft released KB5089549 on May 12, 2026, as the monthly cumulative security update for Windows 11 versions 25H2 and 24H2, moving systems to OS builds 26200.8457 and 26100.8457 while bundling security fixes, servicing-stack changes, and selected reliability improvements. The update looks...

On May 10, 2026, CNX Software published a first-person account of a Khadas Mind 2 BIOS update that turned a five-minute Windows 11 firmware job into a two-hour BitLocker recovery detour. The story is not remarkable because BitLocker reacted to a firmware change; that is exactly what it is...

If a Windows 11 PC restarts two or three times while installing the April 2026 update or later cumulative updates, Microsoft says the likely cause is a Secure Boot certificate refresh being applied during Windows Update, not a failing motherboard, broken SSD, or botched installation. That...

Microsoft has confirmed that some Windows 11 PCs may restart more than once while installing recent and upcoming updates in spring 2026 because Windows is applying Secure Boot 2023 certificate changes before older 2011 certificates begin expiring in June 2026. That is the plain answer to the...

The online panic around Windows 11 KB5083769 is a useful reminder that not every frightening Patch Tuesday headline reflects a real-world emergency. Microsoft’s April 14, 2026 cumulative update for Windows 11 versions 24H2 and 25H2 has confirmed known issues, but the available evidence does not...