Free tool: runs in your browser
Cloud coding assistant checklistbefore you share a repo with a cloud assistant
TimeBinder adds a layer of protection against AI and human fraud and disputes. Review the plan you are on, the current training and retention terms, and the exact copies you can still show, before a cloud coding assistant can see a private repo or client code.
Nothing you tick is sent anywhere. This page cannot decide a licence, and it cannot show what a vendor did with your code.
Check the plan, terms and copies you can still show
Tick what is true of the plan you are on, the current terms of the assistant you will use, and the files you already hold. You get a shareable result and clear next steps. Nothing you tick is sent to TimeBinder.
Your choices stay on this page. Nothing you tick is sent anywhere or tied to your name.
Tick everything that is true before you share a repo or client code with a cloud coding assistant
This looks at the plan you are on, the current training and retention terms, and the exact copies you can still show. It cannot decide a licence, and it cannot show what a vendor did with your code.
What to do now
What should I keep before I share a repo with a cloud coding assistant? The short answer
Check which plan you are actually on. Read the current terms for training, retention and opt-out. Keep a dated copy of the exact files the assistant will see, from before the session, and a dated copy of those terms and settings. If the code is a client, employer or otherwise restricted repo, check their terms and any firm policy first, and keep secrets out of the context.
This checklist is not a licence decision. A TimeBind of a file you already hold can show that exact file existed no later than a recorded time and still matches. It does not show what a vendor did with the code.
Why this is still being asked in November 2026
On 12 November 2026 we re-read GitHub's current page on managing Copilot policies as an individual subscriber. That page says GitHub does not use Copilot Business or Copilot Enterprise customer data to train AI models, and that those plans are protected under GitHub's Data Protection Agreement. It also says that starting on 24 April 2026, if you have a Copilot Free, Copilot Pro, Copilot Pro+ or Copilot Max plan, GitHub may use your interactions, including inputs, outputs, code snippets and associated context, to train and improve AI models. Individual subscribers can set "Allow GitHub to use my data for AI model training" to Disabled.
GitHub's April 2026 policy note, still linked from that documentation, adds that the change does not use private repository content at rest to train, but that interaction data generated while you use Copilot in a private repository may be used unless you opt out. The 24 April start date sits outside the last-30-day demand window for this page. The official wording is cited because people are still asking the question now. Plans and settings can change: read the current terms for the product you actually use. This page does not interpret those terms for a specific repo, and it is not legal advice.
Measured demand is current. Autocomplete checked on 12 November 2026, about 9:26 PM Australia/Brisbane, returned suggestion clusters for "does github copilot train on my code", including enterprise, business and free-plan variants, for "github copilot commercial use", and for "copilot enterprise data". An X search from 13 October 2026, first page of 25 posts, was still filling up with Copilot plan and privacy threads on 11 and 12 November, including a 12 November thread on default training settings and opt-out paths. A dated YouTube sample of older Copilot-training explainers sat outside the window and is only supporting context.
The checks are written for the next time a developer is about to share a private repo or client code with any cloud coding assistant, not only Copilot. Other tools have their own plans and opt-out settings. This checklist is also a different job from the vibe-coding review checklist, which is about reviewing assistant-written code before you merge it, and from the AI agent file-access checklist, which is about giving an assistant write access to local files.
Sources: GitHub's current Copilot policy page, read on 12 November 2026, and the April 2026 GitHub policy note.
What this checklist does and does not do
The honest job of this page is to slow down a session until the plan, the terms and the exact copies are in hand, not to judge a licence for you. See also the glossary entries for existed no later than and fingerprint.
| Part | What it does | What it does not do |
|---|---|---|
| The plan you are on | Gives you a reason to pause until you know whether you are on an individual plan or a business or enterprise plan. | Stand in for your account page, or freeze a vendor's plan list as it stood on any one date. |
| Current training and retention terms | Reminds you to read what happens to prompts, suggestions and code context, and to keep a dated copy of those terms and settings. | Interpret a vendor's terms for you, or show what a tool did with a session. |
| Files you already hold | Reminds you to keep the exact files from before a session, and to keep secrets out of the context. | Show that those files are complete, or that a later patch is the same file. |
| A TimeBind of a file you already hold | Records that an exact file existed no later than a recorded time and still matches, using a SHA-256 fingerprint made in your browser. The file stays on your device. | Show that a vendor trained on the file, that a licence was granted, or that output may be shipped under a particular licence. |
If a repo or a patch is one you may need to stand behind later
Before a cloud coding assistant can see a private repo or client code:
- Keep a dated copy of the exact files you already hold, from before the session.
- Make a TimeBind of each exact file or archive you already hold. The fingerprint is made in your browser and the file stays on your device. You can later download a Proof of Time Certificate.
- Read the current plan and terms first, keep secrets out of the context, and store the files, the terms capture and the certificate together.
A TimeBind shows the exact file existed no later than the recorded time and still matches. It is not a licence decision, and it is not legal advice.
First Pooled TimeBind free, no card, then from US$5. An ASAP TimeBind is US$15.
What a TimeBind shows, and what it does not. It shows that an exact file existed no later than a recorded time and that a copy shown later still matches its fingerprint. It does not show who made the file, who owns it, that its contents are true, or whether AI was used to make or edit it. This is general information, not legal advice.
Cloud coding assistant checklist: FAQ
Can this tool decide a licence, or show what a vendor did with my code?
No. It cannot decide a licence, and it cannot show what a vendor did with your code. It only helps you review the plan you are on, the current terms, and the exact copies you still hold. This is not legal advice.
What should I keep before I share a repo with a cloud coding assistant?
A dated copy of the exact files the assistant will see, from before the session, and a dated copy of the current terms and of any training or opt-out setting you accepted. A TimeBind of an exact file you already hold can show that file existed no later than a recorded time and still matches.
Does GitHub Copilot train on my code?
It depends on the plan and the current settings, which can change. GitHub's current documentation, read on 12 November 2026, says it does not use Copilot Business or Copilot Enterprise customer data to train AI models. For Copilot Free, Pro, Pro+ and Max, it says that from 24 April 2026 it may use interactions, including inputs, outputs, code snippets and associated context, to train and improve models, unless you set "Allow GitHub to use my data for AI model training" to Disabled. Read the current page for the plan you actually use. Other assistants have their own terms.
Does a dated record show that a vendor did not train on my repo?
No. A dated record of a file you already hold shows that exact file existed no later than a recorded time and still matches. It does not show what a vendor received or used.
Is anything I tick sent to TimeBinder?
No. The checklist runs in your browser. Your ticks stay on the page.
Is this legal advice?
No. If you need advice about a client agreement, an employer policy or a licence, speak to a qualified practitioner. This page cannot replace that answer.
Related guides and tools
- GitHub Copilot and Cursor: training and opt-outWhat the official training controls actually say, and how to read them
- Vibe-coding review checklistA checklist before you merge assistant-written code
- AI agent file-access checklistA checklist before an assistant can change work files
- Timestamp your code before you open-source itWhat to keep before you publish a repo
- Developer timestampingThe TimeBinder hub for developers
- Source code timestampingDated records of source files you already hold
- GlossaryPlain definitions of fingerprint, SHA-256 and existed no later than
- All free toolsPrivate, in-browser tools
Date the exact files you already hold
Add a layer of protection against AI and human fraud and disputes: a dated, checkable record of the exact files from before a session, kept beside the terms you may later need to show.
- Open the app and sign in with email or Google.
- Add your files. They stay on your computer.
- Seal them and download your Proof of Time certificates.
First Pooled TimeBind free, no card, then from US$5. See pricing.