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The Silent Killer of Startups: Leaked .env Files

•SnapSend Team

Environment variables (.env) hold the keys to your kingdom: database URLs, API secrets, admin passwords.

The Git Accident

A common junior mistake (and senior mistake, if we're honest) is committing a .env file to a public repository. Bots scan GitHub continuously for files named .env or patterns looking like AWS_ACCESS_KEY. Your cloud bill can hit $10k in minutes.

Prevention

  1. Strict .gitignore: Ensure .env is globally ignored.
  2. Git Hooks: Use pre-commit hooks to scan for secrets.

Sharing Configs with Team Members

When onboarding a new developer, you need to give them the .env file. You can't commit it.

  • Don't email it.
  • Don't Slack it.

The Snapsend Workflow

  1. Drag your .env file into Snapsend's File Drop.
  2. Set it to Burn on Download.
  3. Send the link to the new hire.
  4. Once they download it, the file is destroyed from the cloud.

This ensures that even if their email is hacked later, there is no attachment waiting to be found.