Zero-day exploit completely defeats Windows 11 BitLocker protections
Original: Zero-day exploit completely defeats default Windows 11 BitLocker protections
Why This Matters
Critical security flaw undermines enterprise encryption standard relied upon by government contractors
A zero-day exploit called YellowKey allows attackers with physical access to bypass default Windows 11 BitLocker encryption within seconds using a custom FsTx folder on USB drive, gaining complete access to encrypted drives.
Security researcher Nightmare-Eclipse published the YellowKey exploit that reliably bypasses Windows 11 BitLocker protections. The attack involves copying a custom FsTx folder to a USB drive, connecting it to the target device, booting into Windows recovery mode while holding the Ctrl key. This grants full command prompt access to encrypted drive contents without requiring BitLocker recovery keys. Multiple researchers including Kevin Beaumont and Will Dormann confirmed the exploit works. The vulnerability appears related to Transactional NTFS functionality and involves manipulation of system files. Microsoft says it's investigating the issue.