# Gitleaks Action ``` ┌─○───┐ │ │╲ │ │ │ ○ │ │ ○ ┌─┴───────────────────┐ └─░─┤ 4 github actions │ └─────────────────────┘ ```

gitleaks badge

Gitleaks is a SAST tool for detecting and preventing hardcoded secrets like passwords, API keys, and tokens in git repos. Gitleaks is an easy-to-use, all-in-one solution for detecting secrets, past or present, in your code. Enable **Gitleaks-Action** in your GitHub workflows to be alerted when secrets are leaked as soon as they happen. Check out our demos [here (.gif)](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/15034943/178513034-de5a1906-b71d-454a-a792-47b7ac0e21e6.gif) and [here (.png)](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/15034943/193462170-7314a63b-1c37-4c9e-ac93-33d6d3fc561a.png), or see what's new in v2 [here](v2.md). Don't forget to check out our [blog](https://blog.gitleaks.io), which details how to configure and set up Gitleaks-Action for organizations and enterprises. ## Usage Example ```yml name: gitleaks on: pull_request: push: workflow_dispatch: schedule: - cron: "0 4 * * *" # run once a day at 4 AM jobs: scan: name: gitleaks runs-on: ubuntu-latest steps: - uses: actions/checkout@v3 with: fetch-depth: 0 - uses: gitleaks/gitleaks-action@v2 env: GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }} GITLEAKS_LICENSE: ${{ secrets.GITLEAKS_LICENSE}} # Only required for Organizations, not personal accounts. ``` --- ### Environment Variables: - `GITHUB_TOKEN`: This variable is automatically assigned by GitHub when any action gets kicked off. You can read more about the token [here](https://docs.github.com/en/actions/security-guides/automatic-token-authentication#about-the-github_token-secret). **gitleaks-action** uses this token to call [a GitHub API](https://octokit.github.io/rest.js/v18#pulls-create-review-comment) to comment on PRs. - `GITLEAKS_LICENSE` (required for organizations, not required for user accounts): A **gitleaks-action** license can be obtained at [gitleaks.io](https://gitleaks.io/products.html). **It should be added as an encrypted secret [to the repo](https://docs.github.com/en/actions/security-guides/encrypted-secrets#creating-encrypted-secrets-for-a-repository) or [to the organization](https://docs.github.com/en/actions/security-guides/encrypted-secrets#creating-encrypted-secrets-for-an-organization).** - `GITLEAKS_NOTIFY_USER_LIST` (optional): A list of GitHub accounts that should be alerted when **gitleaks-action** detects a leak. An email will be sent by GitHub to the user if their GitHub notification settings permit it. The format should be comma-separated with each username prefixed with `@`. Ex: `@octocat,@zricethezav,@gitleaks`. Spaces are okay too. - `GITLEAKS_ENABLE_COMMENTS` (optional): Boolean value that turns on or off PR commenting. Default value is `true`. Set to `false` to disable comments. - `GITLEAKS_CONFIG` (optional): Path to a [gitleaks configuration file](https://github.com/zricethezav/gitleaks#configuration). - `GITLEAKS_ENABLE_UPLOAD_ARTIFACT` (optional): Boolean value that turns on or off uploading a sarif artifact when gitleaks detects secrets. Defaults to `true`. - `GITLEAKS_ENABLE_SUMMARY` (optional): Boolean value to enable or disable gitleaks job summary. Defaults to `true`. --- ## Questions ### Do I need a license key? If you are scanning repos that belong to [an organization account](https://docs.github.com/en/organizations/collaborating-with-groups-in-organizations/about-organizations), you will need to obtain a license key. You can obtain a [free "Trial" license key](https://gitleaks.io/products.html) for scanning unlimited repos for up to 2 weeks. Scanning repos after the trial license has expired requires a paid license. If you are scanning repos that belong to [a personal account](https://docs.github.com/en/get-started/learning-about-github/types-of-github-accounts#personal-accounts), then no license key is required. ### How do I get a license key? You can visit [gitleaks.io](https://gitleaks.io/products.html) to sign up for a free trial license key for unlimited repo scanning for up to 2 weeks, or choose from a paid tier to enable scanning after the trial license has expired. ### Can I use a custom gitleaks configuration? You can! This GitHub Action follows a similar order of precedence as the gitleaks CLI tool. You can use `GITLEAKS_CONFIG` to explicitly set a config path _or_ create a `gitleaks.toml` at the root of the repo which will be automatically detected and used by **gitleaks-action**. ### Does this GitHub Action send any data to 3rd parties? The only data that **gitleaks-action** sends to any third party is data related to license key validation (namely `GITLEAKS_LICENSE`, [repo name](https://github.com/zricethezav/gitleaks-action/blob/v2/src/keygen.js#L76), and [repo owner](https://github.com/zricethezav/gitleaks-action/blob/v2/src/keygen.js#L18)), which is sent to the license key validation service, [keygen](https://keygen.sh). Your code never leaves GitHub because the scanning takes place within the GitHub Actions docker container. ### Can I use **gitleaks-action** as a third-party tool for [GitHub code scanning](https://docs.github.com/en/code-security/code-scanning/automatically-scanning-your-code-for-vulnerabilities-and-errors/setting-up-code-scanning-for-a-repository)? You _can_ but it is not recommended because it gives a false sense of security. If a secret is leaked in one commit, then removed in a subsequent commit, the security alert in the GitHub Security dashboard will show as resolved, even though the secret is still visible in the commit history. To truly address the leak, you should rotate the secret (and also consider re-writing the git history to remove the leak altogether). ### Why is my gitleaks-action job suddenly failing? _6/21/2022_ On June 21, 2022, we merged [Gitleaks Action v2](https://github.com/gitleaks/gitleaks-action/releases/tag/v2.0.0) into the `master` branch. This was a breaking update, and we made an effort to contact as many of our users as possible via GitHub, social media, etc. If you didn't know this breaking update was coming, we sincerely apologize for the inconvenience. The good news is, remedying the job failure is straightforward! You can either: 1. [Upgrade to v2](v2.md#how-to-upgrade-to-v2), or 1. [Pin to an older version](v2.md#how-to-pin-to-v160) Please note that if you are scanning repos that belong to an organization, you'll have to [acquire a GITLEAKS_LICENSE](https://github.com/gitleaks/gitleaks-action#environment-variables) to use v2 (free "Trial" license available). That might come as a surprise to my users that are accustomed to using Gitleaks-Action free of charge, so I wrote a blog post explaining how/why I decided to monetize this project: https://blog.gitleaks.io/gitleaks-llc-announcement-d7d06a52e801 Finally, please see above for a summary of why I think you'll love the new v2 release: [v2 Benefits](v2.md#v2-benefits) ### How can I get a gitleaks badge on my readme? Enable this **gitleaks-action** and copy `gitleaks badge` to your readme. ### I really need a secret scanner, but I have no money to buy a license. What can I do? If you are scanning repos that belong to [a personal account](https://docs.github.com/en/get-started/learning-about-github/types-of-github-accounts#personal-accounts), then no license key is required. You can use it for free! If your organization needs a secret scanner, you still have a few options: * First, we do recommend writing up a brief justification for the powers-that-be at your organization, asking them to allocate budget for secret scanning. If you need help writing something up, contact us via our website: https://gitleaks.io/index.html * You can encourage your developers to run the gitleaks core tool as a pre-commit hook (https://github.com/zricethezav/gitleaks#pre-commit). In fact, we encourage everyone to do this anyway, even if they are also running Gitleaks-Action v2. * You can always pin your Gitleaks-Action yml to the last free version of Gitleaks-Action (v1.6.0). See here: [How to pin to v1.6.0](v2.md#how-to-pin-to-v160)
**Caveat**: There are some known issues with that version, and it's no longer receiving updates. But it's better than nothing. ## License Change Since v2.0.0 of Gitleaks-Action, the license has changed from MIT to a [commercial license](https://github.com/zricethezav/gitleaks-action/blob/v2/COMMERCIAL-LICENSE.txt). Prior versions to v2.0.0 of Gitleaks-Actions will remain under the MIT license. ## Contributing Please see our [contributing guidelines](CONTRIBUTING.md). _Copyright © 2022 Gitleaks LLC - All Rights Reserved_