Claude Code stores full user commands in.claude/settings.local.json, including passwords or API keys in plain text when they appear in a command.
Apiiro found 1,122 public copies of the file on GitHub containing at least one secret, and 1,379 sensitive items in total.
The findings also show why local deletion alone does not clear a file from Git history.
The extent of the problem
The investigation identified 1.122 public copies of these files, which contained a total of 1.379 sensitive items. Among them were:
- 379 database passwords
- 43 login details for remote system administration (SSH)
- 23 digital keys for Amazon (AWS) computing infrastructure services
The issue affects at least 63 organizations, mostly software companies, whose data was found to be exposed. Apiiro notes that Claude Code is the only one of the 16 tools they examined that stores the full user command in plain text within the configuration file by default.
Why is it dangerous?
The problem persists even if the user deletes the file from their computer, as the history of changes preserves the information within the code management system (git). While reports of the security flaw have been filed since August 2025, there has been no response from Anthropic, the company that created the tool, so far.
What you have to do
If you have used Claude Code, experts recommend immediately changing all codes, digital keys, and passwords that have ever been used with the tool. It is important to assume that these details have already become accessible to third parties and replace them without delay.
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