March 1, 2024 at 01:09AM
GitHub has announced the default activation of secret scanning push protection for all public repository pushes. This feature identifies over 200 token types from more than 180 service providers to prevent fraudulent use. The move comes as a response to ongoing “repo confusion” attacks targeting GitHub, aiming to thwart malicious actors from stealing passwords and cryptocurrency.
The meeting notes highlight key developments in GitHub’s secret scanning push protection feature. This feature has been enabled by default for all pushes to public repositories, enabling users to remove detected secrets from their commits or bypass the block if necessary. The secret scanning feature is designed to identify over 200 token types and patterns from various service providers to prevent fraudulent use. Additionally, GitHub has expanded secret scanning to include validity checks for popular services such as AWS, Microsoft, Google, and Slack. However, the notes also mention ongoing “repo confusion” attacks targeting GitHub, which involve obfuscated malware capable of stealing passwords and cryptocurrency from developer devices. This type of attack relies on social engineering techniques to trick individuals into selecting the malicious version over the real one. If you would like me to provide a more detailed summary or analysis, please feel free to ask.