{"slug": "show-hn-localmask-local-first-cli-that-masks-pii-and-secrets-before-llms", "title": "Show HN: LocalMask – local-first CLI that masks PII and secrets before LLMs", "summary": "LocalMask, a new open-source CLI tool, masks personally identifiable information (PII) and secrets in code repositories before sending them to large language models (LLMs). The tool creates private, masked git mirrors that AI tools can safely read, supporting GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and self-hosted git. It addresses security concerns around exposing sensitive data when using AI coding assistants.", "body_md": "with pipx — recommended, works anywhere\n\npipx install localmask\n\nor with pip — inside a virtualenv\n\npython3 -m venv .venv && .venv/bin/pip install localmask\n\nthen scan any repo\n\nlocalmask scan ./your-repo\n\nIt's on PyPI as `localmask`\n\n. On a Mac you can also\n`brew install sgury/localmask/localmask`\n\n, or\n[grab the tarball](/dl?f=free).\n\nThen `localmask publish <scan> <masked-repo-url>`\n\ncreates a private masked\ngit mirror your AI tools can safely read.\n\nWorks with GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, self-hosted git & Google Secure Source Manager.\nTokens are handled via `GIT_ASKPASS`\n\n— never in a URL, process args, or\n`.git/config`\n\n— and only masked content is ever pushed. In free you use your\nown AI (paste the masked files or point it at the mirror); Pro adds built-in Ask-AI + the proxy.\n[Full guide & security on GitHub →](https://github.com/sgury/localmask#readme)", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/show-hn-localmask-local-first-cli-that-masks-pii-and-secrets-before-llms", "canonical_source": "https://localmaskpro.com", "published_at": "2026-07-12 12:30:56+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-07-12 13:05:17.897929+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["developer-tools", "ai-safety", "ai-tools"], "entities": ["LocalMask", "PyPI", "GitHub", "GitLab", "Bitbucket", "Google Secure Source Manager"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/show-hn-localmask-local-first-cli-that-masks-pii-and-secrets-before-llms", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/show-hn-localmask-local-first-cli-that-masks-pii-and-secrets-before-llms.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/show-hn-localmask-local-first-cli-that-masks-pii-and-secrets-before-llms.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/show-hn-localmask-local-first-cli-that-masks-pii-and-secrets-before-llms.jsonld"}}