Pre-boot Authentication

Pre-Boot Authentication (PBA) or Power-On Authentication (POA) serves as an extension of the BIOS or boot firmware and guarantees a secure, tamper-proof environment external to the operating system as a trusted authentication layer. The PBA prevents anything being read from the hard disk such as the operating system until the user has confirmed he/she has the correct password or other credentials.

Read more about Pre-boot Authentication:  Benefits of Pre-Boot Authentication, Authentication Methods