Microsoft reveals new security feature for Windows 11

Jul 21, 2022 20:18 GMT  ·  By

Microsoft is working on several fronts when it comes to improvements for Windows 11, and the most recent builds include a silent upgrade that many people might actually fail to notice.

It’s protection for brute force attacks, which has been enabled by default in Windows 11 builds and which should also be activated for all devices once the next major operating system update goes live later this year.

David Weston, the company’s OS Security and Enterprise VP, shared more information on the new security feature on Twitter, explaining that the new feature comes with a dedicate policy to mitigate certain attacks.

“Win11 builds now have a DEFAULT account lockout policy to mitigate RDP and other brute force password vectors. This technique is very commonly used in Human Operated Ransomware and other attacks - this control will make brute forcing much harder which is awesome!” Weston explained.

Windows 11 version 22H2 coming later this year

As for when this new feature is supposed to go live for production devices, it’s most likely scheduled to launch as part of Windows 11 version 22H2.

This update is still a work-in-progress, but on the other hand, Microsoft has already picked the RTM build for the upcoming update, with the focus now on last-minute refinements before the production launch begins.

A launch date is yet to be officially announced, but anyone who wants to try out Windows 11 version 22H2 right now can just join the Windows Insider program, especially given the RTM build has already been selected. However, keep in mind that this is pre-release software at this point, so the final build of Windows 11 version 22H2 would also include additional refinements and bug fixes that would make the experience overall more stable and reliable.