Microsoft to Auto-Enable Windows 11 Security Feature That Can Slow Down Games
Microsoft is preparing to switch on memory integrity protection, a kernel-level defense against malicious drivers and code, for more Windows 11 devices through routine quality updates. Group program manager Peter Waxman confirmed that if Virtualization-based Security (VBS) isn't already active on a machine, these updates will enable it too, since memory integrity depends on VBS to work.
The catch: Microsoft has previously acknowledged that VBS and memory integrity can reduce gaming performance, particularly in CPU-bound or emulation-heavy titles, because the virtualization layer adds overhead to memory operations. Gamers who've manually disabled these features to chase frame rates may find them silently re-enabled after an update.
Users who want to opt out will need to check Windows Security's device security settings after installing upcoming updates, since Microsoft is prioritizing security posture over performance by default.