Public release
Comprehensive pre-release audit for making a GitHub repository publicFrom its SKILL.md
npx -y skills add eddmann/agent-toolkit --skill public-releaseAssembled from the repository path, not quoted from the project. Check it against their README if it does not work.
2 things to look at
- no licenseNo license file was found in the repository. Code published without one is not open source by default, so using it at work is a question for whoever answers licensing questions where you are.
- 2 stars2 stars. Stars are a popularity signal and not a quality one, but at this level it is likely that nobody has read this closely except its author, and you would be relying on your own review.
SKILL.md
19.0 KB, ~5.1k tokens by cl100k_base, as published. Nobody here has run it
ultrathink: Perform an exhaustive pre-release security and quality audit of this repository before making it public on GitHub. This is a critical review that protects the developer's reputation and prevents security incidents.
Additional Context
$ARGUMENTS
Project Context
- Current directory: !
pwd - Git branch: !
git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "not a git repo" - Git remote: !
git remote get-url origin 2>/dev/null || echo "no remote" - Repository size: !
git rev-list --count HEAD 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown"commits - Top-level files: !
ls -la 2>/dev/null | head -30 - Package manager: !
[[ -f package.json ]] && echo "npm/node" || ([[ -f Cargo.toml ]] && echo "cargo/rust" || ([[ -f go.mod ]] && echo "go" || ([[ -f pyproject.toml || -f requirements.txt ]] && echo "python" || echo "unknown")))
Instructions
You MUST follow ALL phases completely. This audit protects the developer's professional reputation and prevents security incidents. Do not rush.
Phase 1: Multi-Agent Deep Exploration
Launch 10 Explore agents in parallel to gather comprehensive information:
Agent 1: Security Scan - Secrets & Credentials
Search EXHAUSTIVELY for:
API Keys & Tokens:
- Generic patterns:
sk-,pk_,api_key,apikey,secret,token,password,credential,auth - AWS:
AKIA,aws_access_key,aws_secret,AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID - GCP:
AIza, service account JSON files - Azure:
AccountKey=, connection strings - Stripe:
sk_live_,pk_live_,rk_live_ - GitHub:
ghp_,gho_,ghu_,ghs_,ghr_ - Slack:
xoxb-,xoxp-,xoxa-,xoxr- - OpenAI:
sk-, API key patterns - Anthropic:
sk-ant- - Twilio:
SK,ACprefixes with account SIDs - SendGrid:
SG. - Mailchimp: API key patterns
- Datadog:
DD_API_KEY
Private Keys & Certificates:
- RSA/SSH/PGP:
-----BEGINpatterns .pem,.key,.p12,.pfxfiles- SSH keys:
id_rsa,id_ed25519,id_ecdsa
Connection Strings:
- Database:
mongodb://,postgres://,mysql://,redis://,amqp:// - With embedded credentials in URLs
Other Secrets:
- JWT tokens:
eyJpatterns (especially in code, not legitimate auth flows) - OAuth client secrets
- Webhook URLs with embedded tokens
.envfiles that shouldn't be committed.npmrc,.pypircwith auth tokensconfig.json,settings.jsonwith credentials
Agent 2: Git History Audit
Search the ENTIRE git history for:
Secrets in History:
git log -p -S "password" --all
git log -p -S "api_key" --all
git log -p -S "secret" --all
git log -p -S "token" --all
git log -p -S "AKIA" --all
git log -p -S "sk-" --all
Sensitive Files Ever Committed:
git log --all --full-history -- "*.env"
git log --all --full-history -- "*credentials*"
git log --all --full-history -- "*secret*"
git log --all --full-history -- "*.pem"
git log --all --full-history -- "*.key"
Large Files in History:
git rev-list --objects --all | git cat-file --batch-check='%(objecttype) %(objectname) %(objectsize) %(rest)' | sort -k3 -n -r | head -20
Author Information:
- Check
git log --format='%an <%ae>'for private email exposure - Look for commits with personal vs work email inconsistency
Commit Messages:
- Embarrassing or unprofessional messages
- Messages containing sensitive info (ticket numbers with internal URLs, etc.)
- Profanity or inappropriate content
Problematic History:
- Force-pushed commits that might have hidden issues
- Merge commits from private/internal branches
Agent 3: PII & Privacy Scan
Search for Personal Identifiable Information:
Direct PII:
- Email addresses (especially personal @gmail, @hotmail, etc.)
- Phone numbers (various formats)
- Physical addresses
- Social Security Numbers, National ID numbers
- Credit card numbers (even test ones that look real)
- Names in comments, test data, or fixtures
Indirect PII:
- IP addresses (especially internal/private ranges: 10.x, 192.168.x, 172.16-31.x)
- MAC addresses
- User IDs, account numbers
- Device identifiers
- GPS coordinates
Data Files:
- Database dumps or fixtures with real user data
- Log files with user information
- CSV/JSON exports with PII
- Test data that uses real information
- Screenshots containing user data
Agent 4: Code Quality & Senior-Level Review
Evaluate code for professional standards:
Security Vulnerabilities:
- XSS (Cross-Site Scripting)
- SQL Injection
- Command Injection
- Path Traversal
- SSRF (Server-Side Request Forgery)
- Insecure deserialization
- Hardcoded credentials (even "temporary" ones)
Code Smells:
- Error handling: Are errors swallowed silently?
- Obvious bugs or race conditions
- Dead code or commented-out code blocks
- Excessive complexity
- Copy-pasted code blocks
- Magic numbers without constants
Debug Code Left In:
console.log,print(),fmt.Printlndebug statementsdebuggerstatements- Commented-out debug code
- Test code in production files
Unprofessional Patterns:
- TODO/FIXME/HACK/XXX comments with sensitive info or complaints
- Hardcoded
localhost,127.0.0.1, dev URLs - Sleep/delay hacks
- Swallowed exceptions
anytypes everywhere (TypeScript)
Architecture:
- Is the code organization logical?
- Are there clear separation of concerns?
- Would a senior engineer be impressed or concerned?
Agent 5: Documentation Audit
Check project documentation:
Required Files:
README.md- exists, professional, accurate, has badges/screenshots if appropriateLICENSE- CRITICAL: required for open source, correct license typeAGENTS.md- for AI coding assistantsCLAUDE.md- should be symlink to AGENTS.md
Recommended Files:
CONTRIBUTING.md- contribution guidelinesCODE_OF_CONDUCT.md- community standardsSECURITY.md- security policy and vulnerability reportingCHANGELOG.md- version history
Documentation Quality:
- No internal URLs, company wikis, or private references
- No employee names or internal team references
- No outdated information that exposes old infrastructure
- Setup instructions actually work
- No placeholder text or TODOs
GitHub-Specific Files:
.github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/- appropriate for public use.github/PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE.md- no internal references.github/CODEOWNERS- no internal usernames/teams.github/FUNDING.yml- if sponsorship desired.github/dependabot.yml- security updates configured
Agent 6: Configuration & Build Files
Review all config files:
Git Configuration:
.gitignoreis comprehensive - check for missing:.env*(except.env.example)- IDE folders (
.idea/,.vscode/,*.swp) - OS files (
.DS_Store,Thumbs.db) - Build outputs (
dist/,build/,node_modules/,__pycache__/) - Coverage reports
- Log files
.gitattributesfor line endings, LFS
Environment Files:
.env.exampleexists WITHOUT real values- No
.env,.env.local,.env.productioncommitted - Environment variable names don't reveal internal systems
Package Manager Configs:
package.json: Checkauthor,repository,bugs,homepagefields- No private registry URLs (
registry.npmjs.orgis fine,npm.internal.company.comis not) .npmrc,.yarnrc,.pnpmrc- no auth tokenspyproject.toml,setup.py- no internal referencesCargo.toml- no private registries
CI/CD Configs:
.github/workflows/*.yml- no hardcoded secrets (should use${{ secrets.X }}).gitlab-ci.yml,.circleci/config.yml, etc.- No internal CI server references
- No hardcoded deployment targets
Docker & Containers:
Dockerfile- no secrets in ENV or COPYdocker-compose.yml- no real passwords (use env vars)- No internal registry references
Infrastructure as Code:
- Terraform: No hardcoded credentials, no state files committed
- CloudFormation: No embedded secrets
- Kubernetes manifests: No secrets in plain text
Agent 7: Dependency & License Audit
Check dependencies for security and legal issues:
Security Vulnerabilities: Run appropriate audit command:
- Node.js:
npm auditoryarn auditorpnpm audit - Python:
pip-auditorsafety check - Rust:
cargo audit - Go:
govulncheck - Ruby:
bundle audit
License Compatibility:
- Check that all dependency licenses are compatible with your chosen LICENSE
- Watch for: GPL (viral), AGPL (very viral), SSPL, Commons Clause
- Ensure you can legally open-source with your dependency mix
- Check for "license unknown" dependencies
Dependency Concerns:
- Deprecated packages
- Unmaintained packages (no updates in 2+ years)
- Packages with known issues
- Internal/private packages that shouldn't be referenced
Agent 8: File Hygiene & Artifacts
Check for files that shouldn't be committed:
OS & Editor Artifacts:
.DS_Store(macOS)Thumbs.db,desktop.ini(Windows)*.swp,*.swo,*~(Vim).idea/,*.iml(JetBrains).vscode/(VS Code - unless intentionally shared)*.sublime-*(Sublime Text)
Build Artifacts:
node_modules/dist/,build/,out/__pycache__/,*.pyc,*.pyotarget/(Rust/Java)vendor/(Go, unless intentional)*.class,*.jar(Java)- Coverage reports with local paths
Temporary & Backup Files:
*.bak,*.backup,*.old*.tmp,*.temp*.logfiles*.orig(merge artifacts)
Large Files:
- Files > 10MB that should be in Git LFS or excluded
- Accidentally committed datasets, databases, binaries
- Media files that should be hosted elsewhere
- Check:
find . -size +10M -type f
Compiled/Binary Files:
- Executable binaries
.exe,.dll,.so,.dylib- Compiled assets that should be built, not committed
Agent 9: Hardcoded Paths & Internal References
Search for environment-specific or internal references:
Absolute Paths:
/Users/(macOS home directories)/home/(Linux home directories)C:\Users\(Windows)- Any path containing usernames
Internal Infrastructure:
- Internal hostnames (
*.internal,*.local,*.corp) - Private IP ranges in configs
- Internal DNS names
- VPN endpoints
- Internal load balancer URLs
Internal Tools & Services:
- Slack webhook URLs
- Internal Jira/Linear/Asana URLs
- Company wiki/Confluence/Notion links
- Internal monitoring (Datadog, Grafana dashboards)
- Internal artifact repositories
Development Environment:
- Hardcoded
localhostin production configs - Dev database URLs
- Staging environment references
- Internal API endpoints
Agent 10: Media Files & Metadata
Check images, documents, and binary files:
Image Metadata (EXIF): If images exist, check for:
- GPS coordinates (location exposure)
- Camera/device information
- Timestamps
- Author information
- Software used
- Thumbnails with sensitive content
Use: exiftool -r -ext jpg -ext png -ext jpeg . if available
Document Metadata:
- PDF author, creator, timestamps
- Office documents (docx, xlsx) with author info
- Comments or tracked changes in documents
Screenshots:
- Browser tabs showing internal URLs
- Desktop showing file paths or usernames
- Notification contents
- Sensitive data visible
Other Binary Files:
- Database files (
.sqlite,.db) - Compiled binaries
- Archives (
.zip,.tar.gz) - what's inside?
Phase 2: Test Verification
Before public release, verify:
Tests Pass:
- Run the test suite: Are there failures?
- Broken tests reflect poorly on professionalism
- Tests that require internal resources will fail for external users
Build Works:
- Does the project build from a clean clone?
- Are all build dependencies documented?
- Does
npm install && npm build(or equivalent) work?
Setup Instructions:
- Can someone follow the README and get running?
- Are there undocumented prerequisites?
Phase 3: Detailed Analysis
After exploration, analyze findings by severity:
- CRITICAL BLOCKERS - Secrets, security issues - MUST fix
- HIGH PRIORITY - PII, vulnerabilities, broken builds
- MEDIUM PRIORITY - Quality issues, missing docs, professional concerns
- LOW PRIORITY - Nice-to-haves, polish items
Phase 4: Generate Comprehensive Report
Output a detailed report with these EXACT sections:
π¨ CRITICAL BLOCKERS
Issues that absolutely MUST be fixed before making this repository public:
| Issue | Location | Risk Level | Immediate Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| ... | file:line or "git history" | Critical/High | ... |
π SECURITY FINDINGS
Secrets & Credentials Found
| Secret Type | Location | In Git History? | Action Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| ... | ... | Yes/No | Rotate & remove |
Code Vulnerabilities
| Vulnerability | Location | Severity | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ... | file:line | Critical/High/Medium | ... |
Git History Concerns
- Secrets ever committed: [list]
- Problematic commits: [list with hashes]
- Author email exposure: [assessment]
π€ PII & PRIVACY
| PII Type | Location | Action |
|---|---|---|
| ... | file:line | Remove/Anonymize |
π¦ DEPENDENCY AUDIT
Security Vulnerabilities
| Package | Severity | CVE | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ... | Critical/High/Medium/Low | ... | Upgrade to X.X.X |
License Concerns
| Package | License | Compatibility | Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| ... | ... | β /β οΈ/β | ... |
π CODE QUALITY
Senior-Level Assessment
Overall Grade: A/B/C/D/F
[Assessment: Does this code reflect senior-level work? Would you be proud to show this in an interview?]
Issues Found
| Category | Location | Issue | Suggestion |
|---|---|---|---|
| ... | file:line | ... | ... |
Positive Observations
[What's done well - briefly]
ποΈ FILE HYGIENE
Files to Remove/Gitignore
| File/Pattern | Issue | Action |
|---|---|---|
| ... | ... | Add to .gitignore / Delete |
Large Files
| File | Size | Action |
|---|---|---|
| ... | ... | Git LFS / Remove / Compress |
Metadata Issues
| File | Metadata Found | Action |
|---|---|---|
| ... | GPS coords, author info, etc. | Strip metadata |
π INTERNAL REFERENCES
| Type | Location | Reference | Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardcoded path | file:line | /Users/edd/... | Remove |
| Internal URL | file:line | https://internal.company.com | Remove |
| ... | ... | ... | ... |
π DOCUMENTATION STATUS
| Document | Status | Quality | Action Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| README.md | β /β | Good/Needs Work | ... |
| LICENSE | β /β | - | ... |
| AGENTS.md | β /β | - | Run /generate-agents-md |
| CLAUDE.md β AGENTS.md | β /β | - | Create symlink |
| CONTRIBUTING.md | β /β/N/A | - | ... |
| SECURITY.md | β /β | - | ... |
| CHANGELOG.md | β /β/N/A | - | ... |
| CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md | β /β/N/A | - | ... |
.gitignore Completeness
| Pattern | Present | Should Add |
|---|---|---|
.env* | β /β | ... |
.DS_Store | β /β | ... |
node_modules/ | β /β | ... |
| IDE folders | β /β | ... |
| Build outputs | β /β | ... |
π§ͺ BUILD & TEST STATUS
| Check | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Tests pass | β /β/β οΈ | ... |
| Build succeeds | β /β/β οΈ | ... |
| Dependencies install | β /β/β οΈ | ... |
| README instructions work | β /β/β οΈ | ... |
π§ RECOMMENDED ACTIONS
π΄ Must Do Before Public Release
- ...
- ...
π‘ Should Do (Professional Quality)
- ...
- ...
π’ Nice to Have
- ...
- ...
π PRE-RELEASE CHECKLIST
Security
- All secrets removed from current code
- Git history cleaned if secrets were ever committed
- All exposed credentials rotated
- No API keys, tokens, or passwords in code
- No private keys or certificates committed
Privacy
- PII removed or anonymized
- No personal email addresses in code
- Test data doesn't contain real user info
- Image metadata stripped (EXIF)
Dependencies
- No critical security vulnerabilities
- All licenses compatible with project license
- No private/internal package references
Documentation
- LICENSE file present and correct
- README.md professional and complete
- AGENTS.md created
- CLAUDE.md symlinked to AGENTS.md
- Setup instructions verified working
Code Quality
- No debug code (console.log, etc.)
- No TODO/FIXME with sensitive info
- No hardcoded localhost/dev URLs
- Code reflects senior-level quality
- Tests pass
File Hygiene
- .gitignore is comprehensive
- No .env files committed (only .env.example)
- No OS artifacts (.DS_Store, Thumbs.db)
- No IDE folders with personal settings
- No large files that should be in LFS
- No build artifacts committed
Git History
- No secrets in commit history
- No embarrassing commit messages
- Author emails are appropriate for public
- No internal branch references
References
- No hardcoded absolute paths
- No internal URLs or hostnames
- No company-specific references
- Package metadata is public-appropriate
β οΈ GIT HISTORY CLEANUP
If secrets were found in git history:
Option 1: BFG Repo-Cleaner (Recommended)
# Install BFG
brew install bfg
# Remove specific files from history
bfg --delete-files "*.env" --no-blob-protection
# Remove specific strings
bfg --replace-text passwords.txt --no-blob-protection
# Clean up
git reflog expire --expire=now --all && git gc --prune=now --aggressive
Option 2: git filter-repo
# Install
pip install git-filter-repo
# Remove file from history
git filter-repo --path .env --invert-paths
# Remove string pattern
git filter-repo --replace-text <(echo 'ACTUAL_SECRET==>REMOVED')
After Cleanup
- ROTATE ALL EXPOSED CREDENTIALS IMMEDIATELY
- Force push to remote (coordinate with team)
- All collaborators must re-clone (their copies have the secrets)
- GitHub caches: Contact GitHub support to clear cached views
Critical Rules
- DO NOT make any changes - this is audit only
- BE EXHAUSTIVE - missing a secret can cause real damage
- CHECK GIT HISTORY - current code isn't enough, secrets in history are just as dangerous
- BE SPECIFIC - include file:line for every finding
- PRIORITIZE BY RISK - critical blockers must be unmissable
- THINK REPUTATION - would this code impress a senior hiring manager?
- VERIFY CLAIMS - don't just check file existence, verify contents
After This Audit
- Fix all critical blockers - no exceptions
- Rotate any exposed credentials - even if "probably not used"
- Run
/generate-agents-mdif AGENTS.md is missing - Run
/generate-readmeif README needs improvement - Re-run
/public-releaseto verify all fixes - Only then: Make repository public
What ships with it
Read from the repository
Just SKILL.md. No reference files, no scripts.
Gives 0 of the 12 instructions most ship operate skills give in ~5.1k tokens
Counted across 779 of the 1,178 authors here whose files we hold, read 2026-08-07
- Document a rollback plan before deploymentin 41 of 779, across 22 files
- Update the changelogin 21 of 779, across 19 files
- Run the test suitein 20 of 779
- Create an annotated git tagin 20 of 779
- Clean up feature flags after full rolloutin 18 of 779, across 10 files
- Verify deployment health after launchin 18 of 779, across 10 files
- Test both feature flag statesin 17 of 779, across 9 files
- Verify the working tree is cleanin 17 of 779
- Make database migrations backward-compatiblein 16 of 779, across 8 files
- Set up error monitoring before launchin 15 of 779, across 7 files
- Monitor metrics at each rollout stagein 14 of 779, across 5 files
- Create a GitHub releasein 14 of 779
Said here and by no other author read
- scan exhaustively for leaked secrets and credentials
- search entire git history for sensitive data
- scan for personal identifiable information in files
- review code for security vulnerabilities
- check documentation for internal references
- verify environment files contain no real values
Grouped from the skills themselves: near-identical wordings counted once, and counted by distinct author, so one author publishing three of these counts once. Length counted with cl100k_base; the agent that loads this file may tokenize it differently.