# BUG REPORT: git clone of non-existent repository results in request for credentials

3 messages from 2018-11-11 to 2018-11-11. Participants: Federico Lucifredi, Ævar Arnfjörð Bjarmason.
Thread: https://gitlist.dev/t/49797

## Federico Lucifredi, 2018-11-11 09:22

Subject: BUG REPORT: git clone of non-existent repository results in request for credentials
Message-ID: <708E1759-B2E3-436C-9D54-214159655B1B@acm.org>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/708E1759-B2E3-436C-9D54-214159655B1B%40acm.org

```
git clone of non-existent repository results in request for credentials

REPRODUCING:
sudo apt install git
git clone https://github.com/xorbit/LiFePo4owered-Pi.git    #this repo does not exist

Git will then prompt for username and password on Github.

I can see a valid data-leak concern (one could probe for private repository names in a brute-force fashion), but then again the UX impact is appalling. Chances of someone typing an invalid repo name are pretty high, and this error message has nothing to do with the actual error.

RESOLUTION:
The error message should indicate that the repository name does not exist. 


Best -F



_________________________________________
-- "'Problem' is a bleak word for challenge" - Richard Fish
(Federico L. Lucifredi) - flucifredi at acm.org - GnuPG 0x4A73884C


```

## Ævar Arnfjörð Bjarmason, 2018-11-11 14:00

Subject: Re: BUG REPORT: git clone of non-existent repository results in request for credentials
Message-ID: <87y39z3ea8.fsf@evledraar.gmail.com>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/87y39z3ea8.fsf%40evledraar.gmail.com
In-Reply-To: <708E1759-B2E3-436C-9D54-214159655B1B@acm.org>

```

On Sun, Nov 11 2018, Federico Lucifredi wrote:

> git clone of non-existent repository results in request for credentials
>
> REPRODUCING:
> sudo apt install git
> git clone https://github.com/xorbit/LiFePo4owered-Pi.git    #this repo does not exist
>
> Git will then prompt for username and password on Github.
>
> I can see a valid data-leak concern (one could probe for private repository names in a brute-force fashion), but then again the UX impact is appalling. Chances of someone typing an invalid repo name are pretty high, and this error message has nothing to do with the actual error.
>
> RESOLUTION:
> The error message should indicate that the repository name does not exist.

This is a legitimate thing to complain about, but it has nothing to do
with git itself maintained on this mailing list, but the response codes
of specific git hosting websites. E.g. here's two issues for fixing this
on GitLab:

https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab-ce/issues/50201
https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab-ce/issues/50660

These hosting platforms are intentionally producing bad error messages
to not leak information, as you note.

So I doubt it's something they'll ever change, the bug I have open with
this on GitLab is to make this configurable for privately run instances.

```

## Federico Lucifredi, 2018-11-11 18:00

Subject: Re: BUG REPORT: git clone of non-existent repository results in request for credentials
Message-ID: <C44E4FCB-D968-43E6-82CC-7D2F73D461C7@acm.org>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/C44E4FCB-D968-43E6-82CC-7D2F73D461C7%40acm.org
In-Reply-To: <87y39z3ea8.fsf@evledraar.gmail.com>

```
I was afraid that was the reason. Oh well, at least we know why :-)

Thanks Ævar!

Best-F

> On Nov 11, 2018, at 9:00 AM, Ævar Arnfjörð Bjarmason <avarab@gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> 
>> On Sun, Nov 11 2018, Federico Lucifredi wrote:
>> 
>> git clone of non-existent repository results in request for credentials
>> 
>> REPRODUCING:
>> sudo apt install git
>> git clone https://github.com/xorbit/LiFePo4owered-Pi.git    #this repo does not exist
>> 
>> Git will then prompt for username and password on Github.
>> 
>> I can see a valid data-leak concern (one could probe for private repository names in a brute-force fashion), but then again the UX impact is appalling. Chances of someone typing an invalid repo name are pretty high, and this error message has nothing to do with the actual error.
>> 
>> RESOLUTION:
>> The error message should indicate that the repository name does not exist.
> 
> This is a legitimate thing to complain about, but it has nothing to do
> with git itself maintained on this mailing list, but the response codes
> of specific git hosting websites. E.g. here's two issues for fixing this
> on GitLab:
> 
> https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab-ce/issues/50201
> https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab-ce/issues/50660
> 
> These hosting platforms are intentionally producing bad error messages
> to not leak information, as you note.
> 
> So I doubt it's something they'll ever change, the bug I have open with
> this on GitLab is to make this configurable for privately run instances.
> 


```