High Risk →

gitleaks

Runs Gitleaks to detect hardcoded secrets in git repositories. Returns structured finding data with redacted secrets.

How to control gitleaks ↓

What gitleaks does on Lint

AI agents invoke gitleaks to trigger actions in Lint. What it does depends on the arguments the agent supplies, and its effects often reach beyond the immediate call — builds kicked off, notifications sent, workflows started.

High Risk

Why gitleaks needs a policy

The tool executes an external binary (Gitleaks) to scan repository contents. It reads data but does so by running an external process/command, placing it in the Execute category. Severity is medium because it operates on the local repository and returns redacted findings, but misuse could be used to probe for secrets across repositories.

From the tool's definition 'Runs Gitleaks' — actively executes an external security scanning tool against git repositories

Documented attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access gitleaks gives an agent:

How to control gitleaks

PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway — it sits between your AI agents and Lint, and nothing reaches the server without passing your rules. This is the rule we recommend for gitleaks:

policy.json
{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "tools": {
    "gitleaks": {
      "limits": [
        {
          "counter": "gitleaks_rate",
          "window": "minute",
          "max": 10,
          "scope": "grant"
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

gitleaks stays usable, but rate-capped — a runaway agent can't fire it dozens of times a minute. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.

  1. Create a free account and register Lint — nothing to install.
  2. Add this policy — paste it, or build it visually.
  3. Point your MCP client (Claude, Cursor, anything) at your gateway URL.
RATE-LIMIT THIS TOOL →

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Related tools and policies

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Questions about gitleaks

What does the gitleaks tool do? +

Runs Gitleaks to detect hardcoded secrets in git repositories. Returns structured finding data with redacted secrets. It is categorised as a Execute tool in the Lint MCP Server, which means it can trigger actions or run processes. Use rate limits and argument validation.

How do I enforce a policy on gitleaks? +

Register the Lint MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for gitleaks: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches Lint. Nothing to install.

What risk level is gitleaks? +

gitleaks is a Execute tool with high risk. Execute tools should be rate-limited and have argument validation enabled.

Can I rate-limit gitleaks? +

Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the gitleaks rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.

How do I block gitleaks completely? +

Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for gitleaks. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.

What MCP server provides gitleaks? +

gitleaks is provided by the Lint MCP server (Dave-London/Pare). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.

Enforce policy on every Lint tool call.

Start from Lint, add the rest of your stack, and see everything your agents can call. Then put policy on all of it.

Free to start. No card required.

202 Lint tools catalogued and risk-classified — across an index of 43,000+ MCP servers.

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