Security of Windows fingerprint reader

[Tristan RHODES <TristanRhodes () WEBER EDU>]

There are inexpensive fingerprint readers made by Microsoft which allow
a user to log into Windows using their fingerprint.

How secure are these?

If someone has physical access to the computer, are they still able to
boot into an alternative OS and insert a new password hash?  Or do these
devices have something that prevents this?  Is encrypting the filesystem
(EFS) required to protect your data?

Thanks,

Tristan Rhodes