Generic Secret Assignment in Code Regex for PHP

What this pattern does

This page provides a comprehensive, battle-tested regular expression for matching generic secret assignment in code, ported and verified for PHP. In security-sensitive code, using an unverified regex can open the door to both false positives and denial-of-service attacks. The snippet below is ready to drop into your PHP project — whether you're validating in a Laravel validator, a WordPress plugin, or a standalone PHP script.

Php Implementation

<?php
// Generic Secret Assignment in Code
// ReDoS-safe | RegexVault — Security > Secrets & Config

define('GENERIC_SECRET_ASSIGNMENT_IN_CODE_PATTERN', '/(?:password|passwd|secret|token|api[_-]?key|auth[_-]?key|access[_-]?key|client[_-]?secret|private[_-]?key|encryption[_-]?key)(?:[\s]*[:=][\s]*)["\']([^"\'\s]{8,})["\']/');

function validate_generic_secret_assignment_in_code(string $input): bool {
    return (bool) preg_match(GENERIC_SECRET_ASSIGNMENT_IN_CODE_PATTERN, $input);
}

// Example
var_dump(validate_generic_secret_assignment_in_code("password = 'mySecretPassword123'")); // bool(true)

Test Cases

When to use this pattern

This pattern is drawn from the Security > Secrets & Config category and carries a ReDoS-safe certification. That matters for PHP developers because especially relevant in PHP where PCRE backtracking limits can trigger silent failures on malicious input. RegexVault audits patterns against known backtracking attack vectors, ensuring you have the necessary context before using this regex in a high-stakes production environment.

Common Pitfalls

Technical Notes

Detection pattern for secret scanning in codebases and config files. The value capture group (1) should be examined for entropy and length. False positive rate is non-trivial — values like 'your_password_here' or 'changeme' are common placeholders. Use entropy scoring alongside pattern matching.