Hey there! If you’re deep in the research process of choosing a new git secrets scanning solution then you’re probably looking to compare GitGuardian with other options to determine whether it might be right for you. To help make this as easy as possible, we’ve put together a detailed overview of how GitGuardian Internal Monitoring stacks up to GitLab’s secret scanning.
Before we dive into the comparison of the main features we first need to acknowledge the difference in business models between GitLab Secret Detection and GitGuardian Internal Monitoring.
Most of GitLab's Application Security features, including secret scanning, are covered in the GitLab Ultimate license. The bundle includes:
Purchasing a GitLab Ultimate license for Application Security features might be a worthwhile decision if you are looking to deal with a single vendor for multiple security capabilities. There’s one caveat however, you are going without the in-depth coverage of best-of-breed solutions. For example, Snyk for open-source dependency scanning and GitGuardian for secret scanning will perform better in their respective areas. Ultimately, it comes down to choosing between the best possible coverage while dealing with multiple vendors or the convenience of dealing with a single vendor.
As mentioned above, GitLab Ultimate covers different elements of application security. This page will evaluate one feature of the package, Secret Detection.
Now let’s dive into how GitLab’s Secret Detection, based on the open source tool GitLeaks (for which we have a dedicated comparison) compares with GitGuardian's Internal Monitoring solution.
The space is evolving quickly, and we make our best efforts to keep information on our competitors up to date. If you see any information that you consider outdated or unfair with our competitors, please contact us and we will immediately set the record straight!
(for both public and internal monitoring products)
GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes
++ Results can be displayed in your GitLab Security Dashboard (see here).
JSON reports for all vulnerabilities are also available.
Only available with GitLab Ultimate plan.
Yes
++ Results can be displayed in your GitLab Security Dashboard (see here).
Only available with GitLab Ultimate plan.
Yes
++ Developers can view pipelines’ security tab and reports in the merge request widget.
Only available with GitLab Ultimate plan.
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Harvest candidates
Filter false positives
GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes - Over %ndet% secrets detectors (API keys, database connection strings, certificates, usernames and passwords, ...)
++ 20 types of secrets
Based on the rulesets and key types of open-source tool GitLeaks.
Yes, in combination with other techniques to get rid of false positives.
++ Supported. Very limited generic prefixes for API keys “api-”
No contextual analysis (= false-positive prone)
Yes. The context of a presumed credential can help a lot to filter bad candidates (e.g. the import of an API wrapper is a strong indicator of a true positive).
Yes, where feasible.
Yes - Ability to exclude folders such as test folders and filter certain credentials like those containing "EXAMPLE" or "QWERTY" in them (placeholders).
Yes. Approx. %secrets-scanned-in-a-day% alerts sent per day!
Sensitive filetypes raise specific alerts: policy breaks.
-- Not supported
Yes, but only through our support and if the detector can be deployed for all customers. Full ability to define custom detectors to be expected in H2 2021.
++ Yes, through GitLeaks customizable rulesets.
Only available with GitLab Ultimate plan.
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GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes
++ Yes, with GitLab Runner with the docker or Kubernetes executor
Yes, native GitHub app at organisation level (simple integration)
Yes, upon integration of a GHE organization, users can choose to:
- give access to only one repository in particular
- give access to all repositories (and the ones that will be created).
++ Yes, runs in the GitLab Pipeline of a given project, and in the MR widget
Core detection engine can be used to scan any type of text files (Slack messages, Gdivre, Jira tickets, etc.) More information: here
-- No secret detection API
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GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes
Yes
++ Yes, but only at the developer level for failed pipelines.
Native integration
-- Not supported
Yes
Yes
-- Not supported
Native integration (Q4 2021)
++ Yes, if the JIRA integration is enabled on the specific project
Available to push alerts (JSON output format)
Not supported
++ Native integration
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GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes - For example, credentials containing “admin” or “prod” in their context can be prioritized.
Yes
Yes - Whitelist credentials or folders such as test folders.
++ Yes
Yes - Multiple alerts related to the same leaked credential are grouped and can be resolved in a unified manner. No need to triage/resolve every single occurrence.
-- Not supported
API to retrieve and update secrets incidents
-- Not supported
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GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes - Global Health Status, MTTD / MTTR, etc.
++ Limited, through the security dashboard.
Only available with GitLab Ultimate plan.
Yes - Enriched data can be exported in CSV format.
++ Yes, in JSON format.
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GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes
++ Yes
Yes - Roles available: Owner / Manager (Admin) / Members.
-- No
Yes
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(On top of general capabilities)
GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes
Yes - We have the ability to match developers, source code and companies using a unique combination of heuristics. Contact us, we will show you our results for your company!
Yes - This is where 80% of corporate leaks occur on GitHub.
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GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes
No - GitGuardian Public Monitoring scans only public data, thus on prem is often not a requirement for our customers.
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(On top of general capabilities)
GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes - Integration at the GitHub Org level with the ability to select monitored repositories
Yes - Integration at the instance level on full perimeter or at the group level
++ Yes, with GitLab Runner with the docker or Kubernetes executor, in the GitLab Pipeline of a given project, and in the MR widget.
Yes - Bitbucket Server/Data Center customer only
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GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Supported through GitGuardian Shield (view documentation here)
++ Supported via customization
Supported through GitGuardian Shield (view documentation here)
++ Supported via customization
Supported but not recommended because "pre receive" can block developers and create friction
++ Supported via customization
Yes, supported natively. Real-time incremental scanning.
++ Yes, but checks can only be included in your GitLab pipelines.
Natively integrates with GitLab pipelines, in addition to CircleCI, Travis CI, Drone CI...
-- Limited to GitLab pipelines
Yes, can be launched on-demand through the interface
++ Yes, can be configured to run as a job within your GitLab pipelines.
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GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes - Integrate GitGuardian as a pre-commit or scan Slack messages for secrets using our API (that can be self-hosted)
-- No secret detection API
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GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
InfoSec can collect feedback from the developers directly in the dashboard and collaborate in order to remediate.
++ Limited collaboration possibilities.
Developers have the ability to resolve certain incidents by themselves without involving InfoSec if not needed.
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GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes - GitHub only
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GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Yes
++ Yes
Yes - For more than 200 developers or 30k$ annual contract
++ Yes
Individual developer: Free
Small team (<25 dev): Free
Enterprise (>25 dev): Yearly fee based on the number of developers included in the surveillance perimeter
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GitGuardian
GitLab Secret Detection
Integrates natively with GitHub, in addition to GitLab and Bitbucket.
++ Yes, limited to GitLab
Yes
-- Not supported
REST API to scan any plain text by leveraging GitGuardian’s secrets detection engine.
-- Not supported
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Choosing between GitLab Ultimate’s Secret Detection and GitGuardian Internal Monitoring is a choice between deciding if you want to deal with one vendor for multiple critical security disciplines or multiple vendors that have the most extensive coverage in their discipline.
The answer to what solution to buy will very much depend on your precise requirements and also what current tools and solutions you already have in place.
GitLab relies on gitleaks for secrets detection and this can put a lot of risk on your business since it is an open-source project maintained by a single individual and will require a lot of customization. On the other side, GitGuardian is a reliable company with a dedicated team maintaining its secrets detection engine and offering high-quality support to its customers.
To understand more and advise on your specific scenario please don’t hesitate to contact our sales team.
Review your business needs with us and learn more about monitoring source code for secrets!