Credential Helpers introduced credential helpers. On a desktop, the one to use for GitHub 29 over HTTPS is Git Credential Manager 9,326 (GCM): on the first push it opens a browser sign-in (with two-factor authentication or a passkey), receives an OAuth token and keeps it in the operating system's secure store, so no token passes through your clipboard. Git for Windows 2.54.0 47,417 bundles it as the system-wide helper:
git credential-manager --version
git config --system --get credential.helper2.7.3+5fa7116896c82164996a609accd1c5ad90fe730a manager
The newest release on github.com/git-ecosystem/git-credential-manager (https://github.com/git-ecosystem/git-credential-manager 9,326 ) is 2.9.1 (July 2026), with a 3.0.0 preview from 24 September 2026. On macOS, brew 6,457 install --cask git-credential-manager; on Linux, install the release package and pick a store with git config --global credential.credentialStore secretservice. In WSL2 6 , use the Windows copy (Credential Helpers).