Improving Security Settings On Github
Lasted edited: February 15, 2025
A work in progress. Maybe.
Use A Phony Name And Email Address When Pushing/Committing To GitHub
I started to work with a repository on GitHub through a server that is in the cloud.
When I tried to push a file to GitHub, I got asked to complete my name and address on the remote server before I could push to GitHub.
git commit -m "Update gitignore to exclude virtual environment and IDE settings"
Author identity unknown
Please tell me who you are.
Run
git config --global user.email "you@example.com"
git config --global user.name "Your Name"
It then occurred on me that all my pushed and commits must contain an email address and name.
So asked Gemini about this, and ai said it was standard practice to use a phony name and address.
Using a fake name and email address for Git commits is a common and generally accepted practice, especially for public repositories. There are very few downsides, and the upsides for privacy are significant.
Who Knew? Not me.
Change Your Settings To Keep Your Email Addresses Private
Under your account -> settings -> emails
Make Sure your email settings is set to keep your email addresses private:
Use SSH Keys To Connect To GitHub
Create SSH Keys On The Remote Computer
Copy The Contents Of The PUBLIC KEY To the GitHub Settings -> SSH and GPG Keys
Get The SSH Address By Clicking On The Code Button On The GitHub repository
Of course, by the time anyone reads this post, GitHub will probably have changed all of their menus and settings.
The bottom line is that you should check your security settings on GitHub. You may be surprised by what you find.