--- title: Microsoft Gave BitLocker Keys to FBI | daily.dev description: Microsoft's own documentation on OneDrive acknowledges that its engineers can access customer data under a 'zero standing access' policy with elevated approval... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/microsoft-gave-bitlocker-keys-to-fbi-61krwyyjz twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Microsoft Gave BitLocker Keys to FBI | daily.dev og:description: Microsoft's own documentation on OneDrive acknowledges that its engineers can access customer data under a 'zero standing access' policy with elevated approval... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/microsoft-gave-bitlocker-keys-to-fbi-61krwyyjz og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/61KrWyYJz.png og:image:alt: Microsoft Gave BitLocker Keys to FBI og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Microsoft Gave BitLocker Keys to FBI **[David Bombal](https://daily.dev/sources/davidbombal)** · 2 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Microsoft's own documentation on OneDrive acknowledges that its engineers can access customer data under a 'zero standing access' policy with elevated approval roles, and the company discloses data when legally compelled. Forbes reported that Microsoft has handed over BitLocker recovery keys stored in the cloud to the FBI roughly 20 times a year in response to valid court orders, letting law enforcement decrypt laptops. Apple and Meta reportedly claim this kind of disclosure isn't possible for them. The piece argues this illustrates the broader privacy risk of storing confidential data in the cloud versus on self-controlled offline systems, citing an example of Google locking a father out of his account over photos of his toddler. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### Can Microsoft access my BitLocker encryption keys if my recovery key is backed up to OneDrive or a Microsoft account? Yes, when a BitLocker recovery key is backed up to a Microsoft account or OneDrive, Microsoft stores a copy and can disclose it to law enforcement in response to a valid court order. Forbes reported Microsoft receives about 20 such requests per year and complies with legally compelled requests, unlike Apple and Meta, which say this type of disclosure isn't possible for them. _Developers weighing cloud key escrow against self-managed encryption can track these tradeoffs on daily.dev._ ### Does Microsoft's zero standing access policy for OneDrive mean employees can never see my files? No, zero standing access means engineers do not have default, always-on access, but a distinct 'access to customer data' role exists that is heavily scrutinized before approval and can be granted when needed. Microsoft states it reviews legal demands for validity and discloses customer data only when legally compelled, meaning access is restricted but not impossible. _Anyone deciding how much to trust cloud providers with sensitive data can follow this debate on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Schneier on Security](https://daily.dev/posts/schneier-on-security-67iihusqz) · Schneier on Security · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [He Who Controls the Key Controls the World – Microsoft “Often” Provides BitLocker Keys to Law Enforcement](https://daily.dev/posts/he-who-controls-the-key-controls-the-world-microsoft-often-provides-bitlocker-keys-to-law-enforc-zteu7hplr) · Security Boulevard · 1 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#microsoft](https://daily.dev/tags/microsoft), [#data-privacy](https://daily.dev/tags/data-privacy), [#encryption](https://daily.dev/tags/encryption) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/microsoft-gave-bitlocker-keys-to-fbi-61krwyyjz) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Microsoft Gave BitLocker Keys to FBI","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/microsoft-gave-bitlocker-keys-to-fbi-61krwyyjz","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/microsoft-gave-bitlocker-keys-to-fbi-61krwyyjz"},"datePublished":"2026-08-17T14:26:30.189Z","dateModified":"2026-08-17T14:26:51.643Z","description":"Microsoft's own documentation on OneDrive acknowledges that its engineers can access customer data under a 'zero standing access' policy with elevated approval...","image":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/auO6PNiGuAg/sddefault.jpg","thumbnailUrl":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/auO6PNiGuAg/sddefault.jpg","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"David Bombal","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"David Bombal","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--Dz6oUxSb--/f_auto/v1710503980/logos/davidbombal","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/davidbombal"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/microsoft-gave-bitlocker-keys-to-fbi-61krwyyjz","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"microsoft,data-privacy,encryption","timeRequired":"PT2M","video":{"@type":"VideoObject","name":"Microsoft Gave BitLocker Keys to FBI","description":"Microsoft's own documentation on OneDrive acknowledges that its engineers can access customer data under a 'zero standing access' policy with elevated approval...","thumbnailUrl":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/auO6PNiGuAg/sddefault.jpg","uploadDate":"2026-08-17T14:26:30.189Z","duration":"PT2M","url":"https://api.daily.dev/r/61KrWyYJz","embedUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/embed/auO6PNiGuAg"}} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"David Bombal","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/davidbombal"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Microsoft Gave BitLocker Keys to FBI"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/microsoft-gave-bitlocker-keys-to-fbi-61krwyyjz#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Can Microsoft access my BitLocker encryption keys if my recovery key is backed up to OneDrive or a Microsoft account?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Yes, when a BitLocker recovery key is backed up to a Microsoft account or OneDrive, Microsoft stores a copy and can disclose it to law enforcement in response to a valid court order. 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