Questions Regarding SecureBoot

[insane_potato]

Hello, I would like to know a few things regarding the SecureBoot functionality of my laptop.

1) If I disable SecureBoot to try booting another Linux OS whose kernel is not signed with Microsoft's keys, will I be able to re-enable SecureBoot after I'm done with it ?

       a) Will all my data remain intact ?

       b) Will it cause any issues with BitLocker encryption even after re-enabling ?

2) If I keep SecureBoot disabled, as long as I have a popular AntiVirus like KasperSky, will the malware rootkits still gain access to "start-on-boot" privileges?

3) Is it safe to keep SecureBoot disabled, so as to dual boot a Linux distro of choice on the non system hard drive with grub bootloader set as default?

Thanks in advance !

[IT_WinSec · Accepted solution]

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@insane_potato wrote:

Hello, I would like to know a few things regarding the SecureBoot functionality of my laptop.

1) If I disable SecureBoot to try booting another Linux OS whose kernel is not signed with Microsoft's keys, will I be able to re-enable SecureBoot after I'm done with it ? >> Yes, you should be able to

       a) Will all my data remain intact ? >> Yes, as long as you do not delete it manually and intentionally

       b) Will it cause any issues with BitLocker encryption even after re-enabling ?  >> BitLocker might prompt you for your recovery key

2) If I keep SecureBoot disabled, as long as I have a popular AntiVirus like KasperSky, will the malware rootkits still gain access to "start-on-boot" privileges?  >> Such malware that might gain access o your start up sectors is highly unlikely nowadays. Kaspersky should be able to protect you - but nothing can guarantee you 100% security. Security is process, not one thing.

3) Is it safe to keep SecureBoot disabled, so as to dual boot a Linux distro of choice on the non system hard drive with grub bootloader set as default? >> Yes, it is safe. I use Ubuntu, LM and Debian with Secure Boot off and have no issues.

Some more info :

>> https://easylinuxtipsproject.blogspot.com/p/security.html#ID6
>> https://www.quora.com/Is-it-better-to-use-Secure-boot-than-legacy-boot-in-Windows-10

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