Windows Defender is actually really good for the common person. If you’re doing highly risky things then perhaps getting better software would be warranted. But if your doing low risk activates, Windows defender is pretty great.

Also, that’s not what VPNs do; you can still download ransomware through a VPN tunnel.

Make sure the “Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available” is off. I think it’s off by default. That setting will reboot your computer no matter what as soon as the update is done installing.

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I can say with full confidence this is something you’ll never actually need to worry about. Law enforcement isn’t just going to grab laptops and pull keys. Plus, it’s easier for them to grab the laptop while it’s logged in anyways. 😐