API Key Leak Sentinel

Monitors repos and local environments to alert when API keys leak

Problem

Developers report OpenAI and Claude API keys leaking overnight even though keys were only stored on a laptop and a server, not on GitHub, so traditional GitHub secret scanning misses it. Many also wonder how to securely use LLMs to check their code and services, lacking a lightweight local-first leak detection tool.

Solution

A local daemon that continuously scans specified directories, environment variables, shell history, local config files, and common CI configs for known LLM and cloud API key patterns; alerts immediately via email or local notification when a suspected leak is found, with rotation suggestions.

Users

Indie developers, small teams, and engineers worried about API key leaks who use multiple AI APIs.

MVP

Scan local directories and env vars for common key formats; support scheduled scans and real-time file-change monitoring; send local notifications or email alerts on leak detection; show file and line number for quick remediation; allow ignoring known safe paths.

Revenue

Free local scanning; paid tier adds cloud leak aggregation, multi-device sync alerts, and team management for $5–10/month.

Why now

AI API usage is exploding, developers commonly store multiple provider keys locally, and existing GitHub scanners don't cover local leaks; indie developers can quickly build a local-first lightweight tool.