pkg.sopackage field notes

brew / rank 1891

Install git-secrets with Homebrew

Prevents you from committing sensitive information to a git repo. Version 1.3.0 via Homebrew; verified from local package data.

install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install git-secrets

provider-native install command

overview

Package summary

Prevents you from committing sensitive information to a git repo

Commands and aliases

  • git-secrets

history

Project history and usage

git-secrets is an AWS Labs command-line tool that installs Git hooks and scans commits for prohibited secret patterns. Its best-known workflow is preventing AWS credentials and other sensitive strings from entering Git history.

Project history

AWS Labs released git-secrets in 2015 as a hook-driven local scanner. The README documents pre-commit, commit-msg, and prepare-commit-msg hooks, as well as repository and global Git configuration for prohibited and allowed patterns.

The changelog shows rapid maturation after the initial release: 1.1.0 added full-history scanning, `.gitallowed`, cached/no-index/untracked scan modes, and staged-file scanning in hooks; 1.3.0 refined provider output handling, Windows path behavior, and IAM key detection.

Adoption history

git-secrets became a recognizable package because it came from AWS Labs and addressed a common Git failure mode with no server dependency. Homebrew and Linux distribution packaging made it easy to add to developer workstations and repository templates.

How it is used

Practitioners run `git secrets --install` inside a repository, often followed by `git secrets --register-aws`, so commits are blocked when configured patterns are detected. They also run `git secrets --scan-history` before publishing a repository or add custom providers for organization-specific patterns.

Why package nerds care

The package is important in Git tooling culture because it turns secret scanning into local hooks and plain Git config. It is small, scriptable, and easy to wire into templates, which made it useful before and alongside hosted secret-scanning services.

Timeline

  • 2015: Repository created under AWS Labs.
  • 2015: 1.0.0 initial release.
  • 2016: 1.1.0 added full-history scans, `.gitallowed`, and more scan modes.
  • 2016: 1.2.x fixed path and provider-command handling.
  • 2019: 1.3.0 improved IAM key scanning and Windows path handling.

Related projects

  • Related tools and concepts include Git hooks, AWS credential files, organization-specific secret providers, repository templates, and other secret scanners used in pre-commit workflows.

security posture

Risk level: green

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

Risk classifier

green risk · low confidence · appliance

Why

  • narrow executable package without higher-risk signals

Signals

  • metadata:no-higher-risk-signals

Install behavior

  • No Homebrew bottle metadata was recorded.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

local files

Configuration and credential file locations

These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval.

Configuration files

Config paths the tool may read or write during local use.

Unix
.git/config~/.gitconfig~/.config/git/config/etc/gitconfig

executables

Installed executables

CommandKindExposureNote
git-secretsexecutableindexed executableDiscovered from the local executable index.

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-08-03
manager version1.3.0
manager updated
local dataunknown
upstreamnot available
latest detectednot detected
  • okNo freshness warnings were generated.

install metadata

Package metadata

Package keybrew:git-secrets
Version1.3.0
Package managerHomebrew
Homepagehttps://github.com/awslabs/git-secrets
Repositoryhttps://github.com/awslabs/git-secrets
Bottlenot recorded
Servicenone declared

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Used sources

  • Geiger risk classifier
  • Nucleus package database
  • curated configuration and credential file locations
  • curated package history
  • pkgdb category and tag curation