What are the best practices to improve code security when managing projects on GitHub?

[riddhisidhimetal-pixel]

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Hello everyone, my name is Kunal and I’m actively working at Riddhi Siddhi Metal Impex on projects hosted on GitHub. I want to make sure my code is secure and follows proper security standards before sharing or deploying it. I’m mainly interested in learning best practices related to securing repositories, handling sensitive data, preventing vulnerabilities, and using GitHub’s built-in security features effectively. If anyone here has experience with improving code security on GitHub, please share your insights and let me know which practices or tools are worth implementing.

[ImElk]

Here's where I would start.

Enable branch protection (require PRs, reviews, and passing checks).

Turn on Dependabot alerts and security updates to detect vulnerable dependencies.

Enable secret scanning and push protection to prevent credentials from being committed.

Use code scanning (CodeQL) to automatically detect common vulnerabilities.

Store sensitive values using GitHub Secrets (never in source code).

Limit repository permissions using least-privilege access and enforce 2FA where possible.

Pin GitHub Actions to specific versions and restrict workflow modifications.

These steps should provide a strong security baseline with minimal configuration and will work just fine for most projects before any sharing or deployment.