GitHub
GitHub claims broad rights to use your content for AI training across all their services, with an opt-out buried in account settings. They also require you to waive similar restrictions on your own services if you use their platform for AI training. The license to your content survives account deletion, and they can terminate accounts without cause or notice.
No meaningful changes here—it's just formatting tweaks like how apostrophes and special characters display on the page. Your rights and what you can do with GitHub stay the same.
See the full change →The Bottom Line
AI-generated summary of the terms as we read them. Opinion, not legal advice.
GitHub claims broad rights to use your content for AI training across all their services, with an opt-out buried in account settings. They also require you to waive similar restrictions on your own services if you use their platform for AI training. The license to your content survives account deletion, and they can terminate accounts without cause or notice.
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Notable Clauses
“By using automated means to access, collect, or otherwise use ("Access") any publicly accessible Content from the Service for the purpose of developing or training any commercially available artificial intelligence model, machine learning system, or similar technology (a "Commercial AI System"), you...”
“You grant GitHub and our Affiliates the right to store, host, archive, parse, display, and make copies of Your Content as necessary to provide, develop, and improve the Service, including by training AI Features, and for the purpose of training, developing, and improving artificial intelligence and ...”
“You also grant GitHub and its Affiliates a license to collect and use your Inputs and Outputs to develop, train and improve artificial intelligence and machine learning models and technologies including those that power AI Features, unless (a) you opt out through your account settings, or (b) your u...”
“You also grant GitHub and its Affiliates a license to collect and use your Inputs and Outputs to develop, train and improve artificial intelligence and machine learning models and technologies including those that power AI Features, unless (a) you opt out through your account settings, or (b) your u...”
“These licenses end when you remove Your Content, unless other Users have forked it.”
“GitHub has the right to suspend or terminate your access to all or any part of the Website at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice, effective immediately.”
“You understand and agree that we will not be liable to you or any third party for any loss of profits, use, goodwill, or data, or for any incidental, indirect, special, consequential or exemplary damages, however arising, that result from the use, disclosure, or display of your User-Generated Conten...”
“We will retain and use your information as necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements, but barring legal requirements, we will delete your full profile and the Content of your repositories within 90 days of cancellation or termination (though some in...”
Protect Yourself
ACTIONABLESettings and actions you can take to limit your exposure
Disable AI Training on Private Content
Prevents GitHub from using your private repository content and AI interactions to train their models
- Go to Settings → Code, planning, and automation
- Click on Copilot
- Under 'User permissions', toggle off 'Allow GitHub to use my code snippets for product improvements'
- Also disable 'Suggestions matching public code' to avoid AI suggestions from public repos
Make Repositories Private by Default
Ensures new repositories aren't automatically public and subject to broader licensing terms
- Go to Settings → Repositories
- Under 'Repository default visibility', select 'Private'
- Review existing public repositories and consider making sensitive ones private
Export Your Data Regularly
Creates backups of your code and account data in case of account termination
- Use git clone to backup all your repositories locally
- Go to Settings → Account → Export account data to download account information
- Set up automated git mirrors to external services for important projects
Review Repository Collaborators
Prevents unauthorized access that could lead to your content being forked and retained
- Go to each repository → Settings → Manage access
- Remove collaborators who no longer need access
- Use teams and organizations for better access control on important projects
Better Alternatives in Productivity
These productivity services have a higher Rights Score on their terms
Disclaimer: The clauses shown above are excerpts from publicly available Terms of Service documents. Ratings and severity levels reflect community and AI assessment, not legal advice, factual claims, or determinations about a company's legality or intent. Clauses marked “VERIFIED” have been confirmed as exact quotes from the source document. Clauses marked “AI-extracted” were identified by AI and may contain errors. Always verify against the original TOS.
Get notified when GitHub updates their TOS
We'll email you what changed and what it means
By subscribing, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.