Question 1

How to set up detect-secrets as a pre-commit hook?

Accepted Answer

Use the pre-commit framework by adding a repo entry in .pre-commit-config.yaml with detect-secrets rev and args like --baseline .secrets.baseline. This blocks new secrets before commits, and you can exclude files like package.lock.json.

Question 2

detect-secrets vs truffleHog: which is better for secret scanning?

Accepted Answer

detect-secrets focuses on a baseline approach for incremental security in enterprises, while truffleHog often scans full git history. Choose detect-secrets for managing legacy secrets without immediate cleanup; truffleHog might be better for comprehensive historical analysis.

Question 3

How to reduce false positives in detect-secrets?

Accepted Answer

Use filters like --exclude-lines for regex patterns, --word-list for common false positives, and inline allowlisting with comments. Audit the baseline to label secrets and tune plugin limits (e.g., --base64-limit) for better precision.

Question 4

Can detect-secrets scan non-Git tracked files?

Accepted Answer

Yes, use the --all-files flag with detect-secrets scan to recursively scan all files, not just Git-tracked ones. This is useful for directories like test_data or when working outside version control.

Question 5

What plugins come with detect-secrets by default?

Accepted Answer

It includes over 25 plugins like AWSKeyDetector, GitHubTokenDetector, and entropy-based detectors. Run detect-secrets scan --list-all-plugins to see the full list, which can be disabled or customized as needed.

Question 6

Is detect-secrets good for Node.js or JavaScript projects?

Accepted Answer

Yes, it works cross-language and has plugins for tokens like npm and Discord, but since it's Python-based, setup requires Python environment. For pure Node.js teams, a JS-native tool might integrate more easily.

detect-secrets

What is detect-secrets?

Overview

Use Cases

Best For

Related Projects

Found a gem we're missing?

Not Ideal For

Pros & Cons

Pros

Cons

Frequently Asked Questions