Microsoft patches Windows 11 account bypass workaround

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 13 Oct, 17:44 · Archive

Microsoft has closed an easy method for bypassing Microsoft account requirements during Windows 11 setup.

Microsoft has closed a simple method for bypassing its mandatory Microsoft account requirement during Windows 11 setup. Users previously could click a 'Learn more' hyperlink on the sign-in screen, which took them to a local account creation screen where they could enter a username, create a password and configure security questions without ever entering Microsoft credentials.

The company has now patched this workaround server-side. The 'Learn more' link now opens a page explaining how Microsoft manages user data, rather than providing access to local account setup. The change follows the discovery of another bypass method just one month earlier.

Local accounts remain supported in Windows 11, but creating them now requires either technical knowledge to use third-party tools or command-line methods, or the enterprise versions of Windows rather than the consumer-grade operating system. Microsoft has been making incremental steps to encourage or enforce Microsoft account usage during initial setup of Windows 11 on consumer PCs.

How it is being reported

• Microsoft closes a worrying Windows 11 account bypass hack — all it took was one clickYou could previously bypass creating or signing in with a Microsoft account when setting up Windows 11.TechRadar · 13 Oct, 17:25
• Windows 11's easiest account bypass gets the Microsoft boot'Learn More' shortcut to local setup reportedly patched server-side, leaving users with more involved workaroundsThe Register · 12 Oct, 15:56

In this story: Microsoft · Windows 11

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem