Some of our residential customers have been experiencing issues with BitLocker encryption in the past week. We have mainly seen this issue occur on Windows 11 laptops.

In this article, we’ll cover:

• The Issue
• What is BitLocker?
• What do we do about it?
• How to properly set up BitLocker

IMPORTANT NOTE: As soon as we discovered the update issue, we blocked that update for our clients. So, if your computer is covered under the Monitoring & Security subscription through CreativeTek or PiXELS, it is already set to skip that update. Even if, by some chance, the update does get installed, our advanced suite of tools can help us recover your device with minimal disruptions.

The issue:

From what we have seen, some users who restart their laptops will immediately be asked to type in their BitLocker Recovery Key. Unfortunately, you will not know the recovery key because of the bug in this update. The computer will be locked up without this key, and because the drive is now encrypted, files cannot be recovered.

Now, what the heck is BitLocker Encryption?

BitLocker is a data protection feature built into all Windows operating systems. It encrypts your hard drive, jumbling up the data inside, so the only way to access and view those files is by using a special key called the BitLocker Recovery Key. This key is not like a password, it is generated by your computer during BitLocker setup, and usually, you can save it to your Microsoft Account or a flash drive. When set up correctly, having BitLocker enabled can be a great way to protect your files in case your computer is stolen.

So what should we do about it?

First, we should mention many of you may not experience any issues as Microsoft released a patch for this update soon after the flaw was found.

If you DO have Monitoring & Security

Again, there is no need to worry if you have Monitoring & Security. Just give us a call or stop in if you experience any issues.

If you DO NOT have Monitoring & Security

• If you experience the issue, please bring us your laptop and charger so we can create a support ticket for one of our technicians.
• But the best advice we can give you is to have proper backups running on your computer! In this modern world, there are WAY TOO MANY ways to lose all your precious data! So be sure the files, most important to you, are backed up regularly without you having to think about it. There are many tools out there that can help you do this, but if you’d like help setting up reliable backups that are supported by local experts right here in Alliance, just give us a call to get started.

BitLocker sounds cool! How do I set it up properly?

We’re always happy to help! And, because of the complications of storing the Recovery Key, we would prefer you let us help you. Just call us, and we can create a support ticket for our technicians. However, if you are feeling adventurous or have some background in technology, there are many videos and blog articles online that you can follow to help you set up BitLocker.

PS: This may sound scary, but it does not mean you should avoid Windows Updates. Microsoft releases hundreds of thousands of updates to their products each year, and only a tiny fraction turn into bugs like this. In fact, many of those updates have critical security patches that keep you safe while you browse the internet. So, if your computer asks to “Update and Restart,” don’t fret!