DEV Community

Cover image for How to Contribute to GitHub Anonymously (No Account, No Trace đŸ‘»)
LivrÀdo Sandoval
LivrÀdo Sandoval

Posted on • Edited on

How to Contribute to GitHub Anonymously (No Account, No Trace đŸ‘»)

#privacy #tooling #git #github

Contributing to GitHub anonymously is harder than it should be.

By default, every GitHub contribution exposes your name, email, commit history, timezone, and long-term activity — often forever. For developers who care about privacy, security, or personal safety, this is a real problem.

gitGost lets you contribute to any public GitHub repository completely anonymously — no account, no tokens, no metadata, and no trace back to you.

đŸ‘» What Is gitGost and How Does It Enable Anonymous GitHub Contributions?

gitGost is an open-source service (powered by Go and licensed under AGPL-3.0) that anonymizes your Git commits and opens pull requests on your behalf.

  • No GitHub login
  • No tokens
  • No browser extensions
  • No email exposure
  • No metadata leaks

Just pure, frictionless, anonymous contributions.

“Your commit history shouldn’t be an HR liability forever.”

How to Contribute to GitHub Anonymously (Step by Step) 

# Add as remote → fix → push → done. Fully anonymous.
git remote add gost https://gitgost.leapcell.app/v1/gh/torvalds/linux
git checkout -b fix-typo
git commit -am "fix: obvious typo in README"
git push gost fix-typo:main
# → PR opened as @gitghost-anonymous with zero trace to you
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

That’s literally it.

gitGost strips your name, email, timestamps, author info, and any metadata that could identify you.

Why Developers Use gitGost

1. Total Anonymity

All identifying commit fields are removed. Pull requests are submitted from a neutral bot account. Nothing points back to you.

2. Simple, Account-less Setup

You don’t need GitHub tokens, logins, OAuth apps, or browser extensions.
Just add a Git remote and push.

3. Real Security

Built in pure Go, audited and minimal:

  • Rate limiting
  • Repository size caps
  • Commit object validation
  • No data stored
  • No logs tied to you

4. Works Anywhere Git Does

Use it from:

  • Your terminal
  • CI/CD pipelines
  • Docker containers
  • Scripts
  • Private VPS setups

Anywhere Git works, gitGost works.

5. Open Source & Auditable

AGPL-3.0 license. Fork it, inspect it, self-host it, or build on top of it.

Common Use Cases

  • You want to fix a typo in a huge repo
 without adding it to your permanent public identity.
  • You’re contributing to a controversial project your company (or country) dislikes.
  • You want to report security issues without exposing your real name.
  • You’re avoiding email harvesting from public commits.
  • You just enjoy anonymity.

Sometimes you don’t want to be a superhero.
Sometimes you just want to be a ghost.

⚡ Quick Start Guide

1ïžâƒŁ Add the remote

Replace username/repo with any public GitHub repository:

git remote add gost https://gitgost.leapcell.app/v1/gh/username/repo
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

2ïžâƒŁ Commit as usual 

git checkout -b my-cool-fix
git commit -am "fix: something obvious"
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

3ïžâƒŁ Push anonymously 

git push gost my-cool-fix:main
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

You’re done.
Your PR appears instantly as @ghost-contributor.

Security, Privacy & Abuse Prevention

To prevent abuse, gitGost enforces:

  • Max 5 PRs per IP per hour
  • Repo size ≀ 500 MB
  • Commit size ≀ 10 MB
  • Full validation of refs & objects
  • No persistence of your data

Privacy without recklessness.

🔧 Want to Contribute to gitGost
 Anonymously?

Of course you can — gitGost eats its own dogfood.

git remote add gost https://gitgost.leapcell.app/v1/gh/livrasand/gitGost
git push gost my-feature:main
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

FAQ: Anonymous GitHub Contributions

Is contributing anonymously to GitHub legal?

Yes. gitGost does not bypass GitHub security or private repositories. It only works with public repositories and standard pull requests.

Does gitGost store my data?

No. gitGost does not persist user data, commits, or logs tied to identities.

Can maintainers see who I am?

No. All commits and pull requests come from a neutral bot account with sanitized metadata.

Can this be abused?

Limits are enforced (rate limits, repo size caps, commit validation) to prevent spam or abuse.

Open Source, License & Links

AGPL-3.0 — open source, transparent, and copyleft.
If you run a public instance, you must provide the source code.

⭐ Be a Ghost. Fix the Internet.

If you believe developers deserve the right to contribute anonymously, bookmark the project and star the repo:

👉 https://github.com/livrasand/gitGost

Privacy matters.
Open source matters.
With gitGost, you don’t have to choose between them.

If you found this useful, consider starring the project ⭐

Privacy-respecting open source needs visibility to survive.

Top comments (0)