diff --git a/galaxy/settings/default.py b/galaxy/settings/default.py
index f48b80bbe..d6022d467 100644
--- a/galaxy/settings/default.py
+++ b/galaxy/settings/default.py
@@ -259,7 +259,7 @@
         'SCOPE': ['r_emailaddress']
     },
     'github': {
-        'SCOPE': ['user:email', 'public_repo', 'read:org']
+        'SCOPE': ['user:email', 'read:org']
     },
 }