What Is GITHUB_ACTOR?
GITHUB_ACTOR is the login of the user (or app) that initiated the workflow run.
GITHUB_ACTOR is used for audit messages, commit attribution when a workflow pushes changes, and conditional logic based on who triggered the run.
What to know
For automated runs it can be an app like github-actions[bot] or dependabot[bot]. It reflects who triggered the event, not necessarily the commit author.
Key takeaways
- GITHUB_ACTOR is who triggered the run.
- It may be a bot for automated events.
- Useful for attribution and audit logs.