How to Disable the Windows 11 ‘Ease of Access’ Shortcut on the Lock Screen

On the bottom-right corner of the Windows 11 lock screen (and the subsequent login screen), Microsoft places a prominent “Accessibility” icon (a stylized person). Clicking this icon opens a quick-access menu that allows anyone to turn on features like the Narrator, Magnifier, On-Screen Keyboard, or Sticky Keys before even logging into the computer.

While necessary for public kiosks or shared computers, this button is frequently abused in office environments and schools to play pranks (like turning on High Contrast mode or the loud Narrator voice on a coworker’s locked PC). Furthermore, there is a long history of hackers exploiting the Accessibility menu on the lock screen to gain unauthorized command-line access. If you are the only user of your PC and do not need these features, you can remove the icon entirely for better security and a cleaner lock screen.

How to Remove the Accessibility Button from the Lock Screen

Because there is no standard toggle switch for this in the Settings app, you must use the Windows Registry Editor to disable the button.

1. Click the Start button, type Registry Editor, and press Enter. (Click “Yes” if prompted by User Account Control).
2. In the address bar at the top of the Registry Editor, copy and paste the following path and press Enter: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Authentication\LogonUI
3. Look in the right-hand pane for a value named ShowTabletKeyboard. (If it doesn’t exist, you will need to create it by right-clicking on the empty space, selecting New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and naming it ShowTabletKeyboard).
4. Note: Microsoft has made it increasingly difficult to remove the Ease of Access button in recent Windows 11 builds. The most reliable method to neutralize the button without breaking the system is to replace the executable it calls (utilman.exe) via the command line or Group Policy.
5. To simply disable it via Group Policy (if you have Windows 11 Pro): Press Win+R, type gpedit.msc, and navigate to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Logon. Look for a setting to disable the Ease of Access menu.

If you are on Windows 11 Home, the easiest way to prevent tampering is to ensure the features inside the menu (like Narrator and Sticky Keys) are disabled via their individual registry keys, rendering the lock screen button harmless even if it is clicked.