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As a good PC user, I run security software in Windows to protect my computer from malware that I may encounter throughout my day. But what about malware that tries to launch before Windows even loads? For this, you can use a feature called Secure Boot.
Built into modern PCs as part of the UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) standard, Secure Boot ensures that only trusted programs launch during the boot process, preventing malware from rearing its ugly head.
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Secure Boot should already be enabled on any existing Windows computer. If not, the option will at least be present if you run Windows 11, as it’s a requirement for using or upgrading to Microsoft’s latest operating system.
Here’s how to see if Secure Boot is enabled and how to turn it on if it’s not.
To see if Secure Boot is already enabled, click the search field in Windows 11 and type msinfo32On the System Information window, scroll down to the System Summary screen. BIOS Mode should say “UEFI”, while Secure Boot State should say “On”. If yes, then you are all set. If not, read on.
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To access the Secure Boot setting, go to Settings, select System, and then click Recovery. In the Advanced startup section, click Restart now to reboot your PC.
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On the screen that asks you to select an option, select Troubleshooting. From there, select Advanced options and then select UEFI firmware settings. Click Restart to boot into the UEFI screen of your computer.
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On the UEFI screen, go to the Boot or Security tab, look for the Secure Boot option and turn it on. Press F10 to save the settings and exit the screen. Your PC will then reboot into Windows.
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After signing back into Windows, type msinfo32 In the search field. Check the entry for BIOS Mode to make sure it says UEFI and check the entry for Secure Boot state to make sure it says UEFI. Your PC will now be protected from any malware that tries to infect your system during boot up.
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