Your access to a project from CircleCI was revoked by GitHub

Overview

If you've received an email stating your access to a project on CircleCI has been revoked by GitHub, it is likely due to missing or changed permissions. This can result in the unfollowing of projects on CircleCI. You may need to re-follow projects if you would like to view build logs in the UI. Additionally, if you are the only follower on a project, this may stop building a project, halting builds from triggering on CircleCI.

For organizations with SAML SSO enforcement enabled: This issue commonly occurs when the CircleCI OAuth token hasn't been authorized for SSO access, or when your SAML SSO session expires based on your organization's Time-To-Live (TTL) settings. When CircleCI attempts to refresh your permissions and encounters a SAML SSO enforcement error, the system may interpret this as lost access and automatically unfollow you from projects, sending revocation notifications.

Common Causes

This issue can occur when:

• GitHub permissions have been changed or removed
• Third-party app restrictions block CircleCI's access
• Your organization has SAML SSO enforcement enabled and the OAuth token hasn't been authorized for SSO access
• SAML SSO sessions expire (based on your organization's TTL settings), requiring re-authorization

When CircleCI attempts to refresh your permissions and encounters a SAML SSO enforcement error, the system may interpret this as lost access and automatically unfollow you from projects, sending revocation notifications.

Below are some ways to troubleshoot this message:

Verify SAML SSO Authorization

If your organization uses SAML SSO enforcement, ensure that the CircleCI OAuth application is authorized for SSO access:

1. Navigate to https://github.com/orgs/YOUR_ORG_NAME/sso (replace YOUR_ORG_NAME with your organization name)
2. Locate the CircleCI application in the list
3. If it shows "Authorize" or has expired, click the "Authorize" button next to CircleCI
4. Complete the SSO authentication if prompted

Alternatively, you can access this through:

• Your GitHub organization Settings → Third-party access → Authorized OAuth Apps

Note: SAML SSO sessions have a Time-To-Live (TTL) set by your organization. When this expires, you may need to re-authorize CircleCI, which can trigger the same revocation notification pattern.

Refresh CircleCI Permissions

See: How to Refresh User Permissions

1. Sign out of your CircleCI account
2. Revoke CircleCI's access in Bitbucket or GitHub
3. Clear your browser's cache and cookies
4. Sign back into your CircleCI account
5. Refresh permissions at https://app.circleci.com/settings/user

If you are still experiencing issues, please reach out to our Support team at CircleCI Support.