# GitHub reports faster secret scanning with more than 98% cost savings

_Published Tuesday, October 13, 2026 at 2:02 PM EDT · Security, AI · Latest · Tier 2 — Notable_

![GitHub reports faster secret scanning with more than 98% cost savings — Primary](https://github.blog/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/generic-github-security-logo.png)

GitHub says its new credential scanner reduced median post-push scan execution time by 86% and serving costs by more than 98% compared with its previous pipeline based on a large language model. The speed improvement made it practical to check generic secrets before accepting developers' code pushes.

The scanner first uses pattern matching to identify possible credentials. A fine-tuned ModernBERT model then examines nearby code, variable names and file paths to distinguish usable secrets from placeholders and other lookalikes.

GitHub measured 13% higher precision and 19% higher recall on the same public traffic. In a customer A/B experiment, repository owner-weighted alert acceptance increased by 11.5%; the model still classifies credential likelihood rather than verifying usability.

## Sources

- [The GitHub Blog](https://github.blog/ai-and-ml/githubs-model-for-secret-detection-finding-more-secrets-with-less-noise/)

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Canonical: https://techandbusiness.org/newswire/30FTJcNAANLrB-LntoT8RT
Published: 2026-10-13T18:02:46.631Z
Story chronology: 2026-10-13T17:56:33.000Z
Retrieved: 2026-10-13T21:03:31.262Z
Publisher: Tech & Business (techandbusiness.org)