How do you use Code Owners in GAS to assign security-related fixes?

• A. Define CODEOWNERS to automatically assign reviewers or approvers for changes in specific paths when issues or PRs are raised.
• B. CODEOWNERS are used to set user permissions for all repositories.
• C. CODEOWNERS only applies to issues, not PRs.
• D. CODEOWNERS automatically merge PRs.

Answer: (A)

Code owners are a way to automatically route review work to the right people for the parts of the codebase they own. By creating a CODEOWNERS file and mapping specific paths to one or more owners (for example, a security team responsible for a /security or /src/security directory), GitHub will automatically request reviews from those owners whenever a pull request changes files in those areas. This ensures that security-related fixes receive attention from the people best equipped to assess them, without requiring manual assignment each time.

When you pair CODEOWNERS with branch protection rules that require their review, those fixes can’t be merged until the designated security reviewers sign off, reinforcing accountability for changes in sensitive areas. This mechanism focuses on who reviews changes in particular parts of the codebase, not on broad permission changes or automatic merging, and it applies to code review flows triggered by PRs (with notifications that can occur for issues depending on setup).