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18.10.10.2.4 Ensure 'Choose how BitLocker-protected operating system drives can be recovered: Allow data recovery agent' is set to 'Enabled: False'

Warning! Audit Deprecated

This audit has been deprecated and will be removed in a future update.

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Information

This policy setting allows you to control how BitLocker-protected operating system drives are recovered in the absence of the required startup key information. This policy setting is applied when you turn on BitLocker.

The 'Allow certificate-based data recovery agent' check box is used to specify whether a Data Recovery Agent can be used with BitLocker-protected operating system drives. Before a Data Recovery Agent can be used it must be added from the Public Key Policies item in either the Group Policy Management Console or the Local Group Policy Editor. Consult the BitLocker Drive Encryption Deployment Guide on Microsoft TechNet for more information about adding Data Recovery Agents.

The recommended state for this setting is: Enabled: False (unchecked).

Should a user lose their primary means for accessing an encrypted OS volume, or should the system not pass its boot time integrity checks, the system will go into recovery mode. If the recovery key has not been backed up to Active Directory, the user would need to have saved the recovery key to another location such as a USB flash drive, or have printed the recovery password, and now have access to one of those in order to recovery the system. If the user is unable to produce the recovery key, then the user will be denied access to the encrypted volume and subsequently any data that is stored there.

Solution

To establish the recommended configuration via GP, set the following UI path to Enabled: False (unchecked):

Computer Configuration\Policies\Administrative Templates\Windows Components\BitLocker Drive Encryption\Operating System Drives\Choose how BitLocker-protected operating system drives can be recovered: Allow data recovery agent

Note: This Group Policy path is provided by the Group Policy template VolumeEncryption.admx/adml that is included with the Microsoft Windows 7 & Server 2008 R2 Administrative Templates (or newer).

Impact:

A Data Recovery Agent will not be permitted for the operating system drive. Users will need to be domain connected to turn on BitLocker. This policy is not FIPS complaint.

See Also

https://workbench.cisecurity.org/benchmarks/25561

Item Details

References: CSCv7|13.6

Plugin: Windows

Control ID: a794725a0e0eae69dc8276cf01ad14bfc1fe335d8ae3b623e827cb5e03afd52b