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ZDNET's key takeaways
BitLocker encrypts your hard drive and requires a key to decrypt it.
Microsoft may give your key to law enforcement upon a valid request.
Don't save your key to the cloud; instead, store it locally or print it out.
Microsoft's BitLocker is a security feature built into Windows that encrypts the entire hard drive. The idea is to protect your personal files from prying eyes in case your PC is ever lost or stolen. Decrypting the data requires a BitLocker recovery key, which is supposed to be safe from access by other people. Aah, but not so fast.
Microsoft has confirmed to Forbes that it will provide your BitLocker recovery key if it receives a valid legal order. For that to happen, though, that key must be backed up to the cloud and not just stored on one of your own local devices. This scenario has already played out in one specific case that may be the first of its kind for Microsoft, suggested Forbes.
Also: Why you need Microsoft's new emergency Windows patch - and the black-screen bug to watch for
FBI agents in Guam were investigating a case in which certain individuals who had been in charge of the island's COVID unemployment assistance program were actually looking to steal the funds. To prove their case, the feds needed access to the BitLocker-encrypted files on the suspects' computers. Microsoft felt the request was justified and turned over the necessary keys to the agents.
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