Last updated: January 12, 2026
An honest security analysis of GitHub Copilot for developers considering it for their projects.
GitHub Copilot is safe with Microsoft/GitHub's enterprise security backing. Code snippets are processed in the cloud, but Copilot Business/Enterprise offers additional privacy controls. The main risk is accepting AI suggestions without review - 40% of AI-generated code contains vulnerabilities.
Copilot is the most enterprise-ready AI coding assistant, backed by Microsoft/GitHub infrastructure. The Business tier's 'no training on your code' policy makes it suitable for proprietary work. Still review all suggestions - AI-generated code has a 40% vulnerability rate regardless of the tool.
Understanding GitHub Copilot security in the context of broader industry trends and research.
of Lovable applications (170 out of 1,645) had exposed user data in the CVE-2025-48757 incident
Source: CVE-2025-48757 security advisory
average cost of a data breach in 2023
Source: IBM Cost of a Data Breach Report 2023
developers using vibe coding platforms like Lovable, Bolt, and Replit
Source: Combined platform statistics 2024-2025
“There's a new kind of coding I call 'vibe coding', where you fully give in to the vibes, embrace exponentials, and forget that the code even exists.”
“It's not really coding - I just see stuff, say stuff, run stuff, and copy paste stuff, and it mostly works.”
On Individual tier, your code snippets MAY be used to improve the model (you can opt-out in settings). On Copilot Business/Enterprise, GitHub explicitly commits to NOT using your code for training models. This is a key reason enterprises choose the Business tier.
Copilot Business/Enterprise is designed for proprietary code with SOC 2 compliance, no model training on your code, and IP indemnification. Individual tier is riskier for proprietary work - consider Business if code confidentiality matters.
Yes. Studies show 40% of AI-generated code contains security vulnerabilities. Copilot learns from public repositories, including code with known CVEs. Always review suggestions and use GitHub Advanced Security to catch vulnerabilities.
Copilot integrates with VS Code/IDEs as an extension (not a separate app). Cursor is a VS Code fork with deeper AI integration. Windsurf is Chromium-based with 94 CVEs. Copilot has the strongest enterprise backing (Microsoft) and IP indemnification.
Don't guess - scan your app and know for certain. VAS checks for all the common security issues in GitHub Copilot applications.