Black & White Path

May 15, 2026 · Information Security

How the 'FailRelock' Flag Let Attackers Bypass BitLocker for the Fifth Time

A debug flag named FailRelock in Windows' recovery environment disables BitLocker relocking when set to 1, allowing an attacker with a USB drive and a modified INI file to obtain full access to encrypted drives—a fifth such breach in five years, highlighted with attack steps, technical analysis, and mitigation advice.