How to check Windows has Device Encryption or Bitlocker Drive encryption on

It's a good idea to ensure disk encryption is turned on - in case the the computer is hijacked, lost or stolen - we want to keep prying eyes out.

If your computer has the required hardware and a Microsoft account signed in, Device encryption or BitLocker will be enabled automatically. Follow instructions below to make sure it really is enabled.

A lot of Windows 10 PCs - especially tablets and hybrid laptops - ship with encryption enabled out of the box. Traditional 

How to check Device Encryption is on for Windows Home

1. Select the Start button, and then click Settings  and choose Update & Security
   
   

2. Scroll down on the left side and choose Device encryption
   
   If you don’t see Device Encryption, then your device may not support it. But if you have Windows 7, 8 or 10 pro, you can encrypt your computer using BitLocker, which has been built-in into Windows for a long time.

Check Bitlocker Drive encryption is on for Windows 10 Pro

Note that Windows 10 Home doesn't have BitLocker. To check your Windows version go to Settings > System > About. 

Here is how to check BitLocker Drive encryption is enabled:

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1. Search in the Start menu for "bitlocker"
2. Select Manage Bitlocker​​

3. This will show the status of Bitlocker for each connected drive. We can see our only drive C:\ has Bitlocker on. 
   

Important: While we're here, let's make get a back up of your recovery key. This is will let you unlock the drive in case of hardware failure or if the account password is forgotten.

Backup your recovery key

While in the Manage BitLocker window, click on Back up your recovery key and choose Save to your Microsoft account.
To be extra safe, also save to a file or print the recovery key.

More resources

• Finding your BitLocker recovery key
• Device encryption in Windows