How to Dismiss “Local Security Authority Protection Is Off” in Windows 11

Wish it away into the cornfield

Do you keep receiving a “Local Security protection is off. Your device may be vulnerable.” notification each time you boot into Windows 11’s desktop area? This troubleshooting guide will explain why that happens and what you can do to dismiss it.

What Is Local Security Authority Protection in Windows 11?

The Local Security Authority (LSA) is the system component that enforces security policies in Windows 11. It authenticates users during the login process, creates access tokens, and manages password policies. Theunderlying process is LSASS.exe.

To bolster security, Windows 11 offers a feature called Local Security Authority protection. It runs the LSASS process in protected mode, blocking unsigned drivers and plugins from loading and preventing potential attacks from malicious code.

Why You Keep Receiving the “LSA Protection Is Off” Notification

The “Local Security Authority protection is off” notification pops up after installing Microsoft Defender Antivirus Version 1.0.2302.21002, regardless of having the feature on or off on your computer. Microsoft has acknowledged it as aknown Windows 11 version 22H2 issue.

What You Can Do to Fix “Local Security Authority Protection Is Off”

You’ve got three methods to deal with a persistent “Local Security Authority protection is off” security warning in Windows 11. You can:

Method 1: Check the Event Viewer and Dismiss

Unless you’re on a new Windows 11 installation, the “Local Security Authority protection is off” error likely appears when Local Security Authority protection is enabled on your system.

Microsoft’s suggestion—if Microsoft Defender Antivirus Version 1.0.2306.10002 or later is not available to you—is to check if Local Security Authority protection is active via the Event Viewer and dismiss the warning if you’ve already restarted your PC at least once after receiving it.

Begin by confirming that the Local Security Authority is running in Protected Mode via theEvent Viewer. To do that:

To dismiss the “Local Security Authority protection is off” notification in Windows 11:

Method 2: Update Windows 11

According to Microsoft, newer versions of Microsoft Defender Antivirus—Version 1.0.2306.10002 and later—fix the “Local Security Authority protection is off” error in Windows 11. Hence, installing all pending updates through Windows Update is the best way to deal with the issue.

To do that:

Method 3: Modify the System Registry

If the Local Security Authority protection isn’t active when checking with the Event Viewer, updating Windows 11 fails to resolve the issue, or you don’t have newer updates to Microsoft Defender Antivirus available, you must modify the system registry to resolve the issue.

Warning: Microsoft does not recommend workarounds to dismiss the “Local Security Authority protection is off” security notification, so only go through the steps below if the methods above fail. You should alsoback up the system registrybefore you go ahead.

Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa

Note: If one or both keys aren’t present, you must create them manually—right-clickLsaon the sidebar and selectDWORD (32-bit) Value, name it after the missing key, and save with a value of2.

Alternatively, you can modify the system registry via Windows PowerShell. Here’s how:

reg add HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa /v RunAsPPL /t REG_DWORD /d 2 /f;reg add HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa /v RunAsPPLBoot /t REG_DWORD /d 2 /f

“Local Security Authority Protection Is Off” Warning Dismissed

As you just found out, you’ve got multiple ways to deal with the “Local security protection is off” error in Windows 11. You can dismiss the notification if Local Security Authority protection is active, install the latest Microsoft Defender Antivirus updates, or modify the system registry if the problem persists.

If none of the methods above work, use a third-party antimalware utility for protection until Microsoft addresses the issue again in a future update.

Dilum Senevirathne is a freelance tech writer and blogger with three years of experience writing for online technology publications. He specializes in topics related to iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and Google web apps. When he isn’t hammering away at his Magic Keyboard, you can catch him binge-watching productivity hacks on YouTube.Read Dilum’s Full Bio

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