fix(sponsor-panel): fake email shim for private GitHub users (#1197)

* fix(sponsor-panel): generate fake email for users without one and fix HTMX error display

Users with private GitHub emails were rejected when requesting a Thoth
token. Now generates login@fake-address.invalid instead. Also changed
renderError to return HTTP 200 so HTMX actually swaps error messages
into the target elements (HTMX drops non-2xx responses by default).

Assisted-by: Claude Opus 4.6 via Claude Code
Signed-off-by: Xe Iaso <me@xeiaso.net>

* docs(sponsor-panel): add plan for fake email shim

Assisted-by: Claude Opus 4.6 via Claude Code
Signed-off-by: Xe Iaso <me@xeiaso.net>

---------

Signed-off-by: Xe Iaso <me@xeiaso.net>

Author: Xe

cmd/sponsor-panel/handlers.go

@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ func (s *Server) inviteHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	user, err := s.getSessionUser(r)
 	if err != nil {
 		slog.Error("inviteHandler: failed to get session user", "err", err)
-		renderError(w, "Authentication required", http.StatusUnauthorized)
+		renderError(w, "Authentication required")
 		return
 	}
 
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ func (s *Server) inviteHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	// Check $50+ sponsorship tier (5000 cents)
 	if !user.IsSponsorAtTier(5000) {
 		slog.Error("inviteHandler: user not eligible for team invitation", "user", user.Login, "user_id", user.ID)
-		renderError(w, "Requires $50+/month sponsorship", http.StatusForbidden)
+		renderError(w, "Requires $50+/month sponsorship")
 		return
 	}
 
@@ -52,14 +52,14 @@ func (s *Server) inviteHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	// Parse form
 	if err := r.ParseForm(); err != nil {
 		slog.Error("inviteHandler: failed to parse form", "err", err)
-		renderError(w, "Invalid form data", http.StatusBadRequest)
+		renderError(w, "Invalid form data")
 		return
 	}
 
 	username := r.FormValue("username")
 	if username == "" {
 		slog.Error("inviteHandler: empty username provided", "user_id", user.ID)
-		renderError(w, "Username required", http.StatusBadRequest)
+		renderError(w, "Username required")
 		return
 	}
 
@@ -80,10 +80,10 @@ func (s *Server) inviteHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 		slog.Error("inviteHandler: failed to invite to team", "user", username, "err", err, "invited_by", user.Login)
 		// Check for common errors
 		if strings.Contains(err.Error(), "404") || strings.Contains(err.Error(), "422") {
-			renderError(w, "User not found or already invited", http.StatusBadRequest)
+			renderError(w, "User not found or already invited")
 			return
 		}
-		renderError(w, "Failed to invite: "+err.Error(), http.StatusInternalServerError)
+		renderError(w, "Failed to invite: "+err.Error())
 		return
 	}
 
@@ -118,7 +118,7 @@ func (s *Server) logoHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	user, err := s.getSessionUser(r)
 	if err != nil {
 		slog.Error("logoHandler: failed to get session user", "err", err)
-		renderError(w, "Authentication required", http.StatusUnauthorized)
+		renderError(w, "Authentication required")
 		return
 	}
 
@@ -127,7 +127,7 @@ func (s *Server) logoHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	// Check user is a sponsor (any tier)
 	if !user.IsSponsorAtTier(100) {
 		slog.Error("logoHandler: user not a sponsor", "user", user.Login, "user_id", user.ID)
-		renderError(w, "Requires active sponsorship", http.StatusForbidden)
+		renderError(w, "Requires active sponsorship")
 		return
 	}
 
@@ -136,7 +136,7 @@ func (s *Server) logoHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	// Parse multipart form (5MB max)
 	if err := r.ParseMultipartForm(5 * 1024 * 1024); err != nil {
 		slog.Error("logoHandler: failed to parse multipart form", "err", err)
-		renderError(w, "Invalid form data", http.StatusBadRequest)
+		renderError(w, "Invalid form data")
 		return
 	}
 
@@ -145,15 +145,15 @@ func (s *Server) logoHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 
 	if companyName == "" || website == "" {
 		slog.Error("logoHandler: missing required fields", "user_id", user.ID, "company", companyName, "website", website)
-		renderError(w, "Company name and website are required", http.StatusBadRequest)
+		renderError(w, "Company name and website are required")
 		return
 	}
 
 	// Get uploaded file
 	file, header, err := r.FormFile("logo")
 	if err != nil {
 		slog.Error("logoHandler: failed to get logo file", "err", err)
-		renderError(w, "Logo file required", http.StatusBadRequest)
+		renderError(w, "Logo file required")
 		return
 	}
 	defer file.Close()
@@ -167,15 +167,15 @@ func (s *Server) logoHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	// Validate file size
 	if header.Size > 5*1024*1024 {
 		slog.Error("logoHandler: file too large", "user_id", user.ID, "size", header.Size)
-		renderError(w, "File too large (max 5MB)", http.StatusBadRequest)
+		renderError(w, "File too large (max 5MB)")
 		return
 	}
 
 	// Read file into memory for S3 upload
 	fileData, err := io.ReadAll(file)
 	if err != nil {
 		slog.Error("logoHandler: failed to read file", "err", err)
-		renderError(w, "Failed to read file", http.StatusInternalServerError)
+		renderError(w, "Failed to read file")
 		return
 	}
 
@@ -212,7 +212,7 @@ func (s *Server) logoHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 		_, err := s.s3Client.PutObject(r.Context(), putInput)
 		if err != nil {
 			slog.Error("logoHandler: failed to upload to S3", "err", err, "user_id", user.ID)
-			renderError(w, "Failed to upload logo: "+err.Error(), http.StatusInternalServerError)
+			renderError(w, "Failed to upload logo: "+err.Error())
 			return
 		}
 
@@ -263,7 +263,7 @@ func (s *Server) logoHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	createdIssue, _, err := s.ghClient.Issues.Create(r.Context(), "TecharoHQ", *logoSubmissionRepo, issue)
 	if err != nil {
 		slog.Error("logoHandler: failed to create GitHub issue", "err", err, "user_id", user.ID, "company", companyName)
-		renderError(w, "Failed to create issue: "+err.Error(), http.StatusInternalServerError)
+		renderError(w, "Failed to create issue: "+err.Error())
 		return
 	}
 
@@ -301,9 +301,10 @@ func (s *Server) logoHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 }
 
 // renderError renders an error message for HTMX.
-func renderError(w http.ResponseWriter, message string, statusCode int) {
+// Always returns 200 so HTMX swaps the response into the target element.
+func renderError(w http.ResponseWriter, message string) {
 	w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "text/html")
-	w.WriteHeader(statusCode)
+	w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
 	templates.FormResult(message, false).Render(context.Background(), w)
 }
 
@@ -334,7 +335,7 @@ func (s *Server) thothTokenHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	user, err := s.getSessionUser(r)
 	if err != nil {
 		slog.Error("thothTokenHandler: failed to get session user", "err", err)
-		renderError(w, "Authentication required", http.StatusUnauthorized)
+		renderError(w, "Authentication required")
 		return
 	}
 
@@ -343,16 +344,20 @@ func (s *Server) thothTokenHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	// Check sponsorship tier (any active sponsorship)
 	if !user.IsSponsorAtTier(100) {
 		slog.Error("thothTokenHandler: user not a sponsor", "user", user.Login, "user_id", user.ID)
-		renderError(w, "Requires active sponsorship", http.StatusForbidden)
+		renderError(w, "Requires active sponsorship")
 		return
 	}
 
 	// Create Thoth user if not already provisioned
 	if user.ThothUserID == nil {
 		if user.Email == "" {
-			slog.Error("thothTokenHandler: user has no email address", "user_id", user.ID, "login", user.Login)
-			renderError(w, "Email address required. Please update your profile.", http.StatusBadRequest)
-			return
+			user.Email = user.Login + "@fake-address.invalid"
+			slog.Info("thothTokenHandler: generated fake email for user", "user_id", user.ID, "login", user.Login, "email", user.Email)
+			if err := s.db.Model(user).Update("email", user.Email).Error; err != nil {
+				slog.Error("thothTokenHandler: failed to save fake email", "err", err, "user_id", user.ID)
+				renderError(w, "Failed to save user email")
+				return
+			}
 		}
 
 		slog.Debug("thothTokenHandler: creating Thoth user", "user_id", user.ID, "login", user.Login)
@@ -364,7 +369,7 @@ func (s *Server) thothTokenHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 		})
 		if err != nil {
 			slog.Error("thothTokenHandler: failed to create Thoth user", "err", err, "user_id", user.ID)
-			renderError(w, "Failed to create Thoth user: "+err.Error(), http.StatusInternalServerError)
+			renderError(w, "Failed to create Thoth user: "+err.Error())
 			return
 		}
 
@@ -373,7 +378,7 @@ func (s *Server) thothTokenHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 
 		if err := s.db.Save(user).Error; err != nil {
 			slog.Error("thothTokenHandler: failed to save Thoth user ID", "err", err, "user_id", user.ID)
-			renderError(w, "Failed to save Thoth user: "+err.Error(), http.StatusInternalServerError)
+			renderError(w, "Failed to save Thoth user: "+err.Error())
 			return
 		}
 
@@ -389,7 +394,7 @@ func (s *Server) thothTokenHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	})
 	if err != nil {
 		slog.Error("thothTokenHandler: failed to issue JWT", "err", err, "user_id", user.ID)
-		renderError(w, "Failed to issue token: "+err.Error(), http.StatusInternalServerError)
+		renderError(w, "Failed to issue token: "+err.Error())
 		return
 	}
 

cmd/sponsor-panel/oauth.go

@@ -530,6 +530,11 @@ func (s *Server) callbackHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 
 	slog.Debug("callbackHandler: fetched GitHub user", "github_id", ghUser.ID, "login", ghUser.Login)
 
+	if ghUser.Email == "" {
+		ghUser.Email = ghUser.Login + "@fake-address.invalid"
+		slog.Info("callbackHandler: generated fake email for user", "login", ghUser.Login, "email", ghUser.Email)
+	}
+
 	// Fetch user's organizations via REST API (for allowlist checking)
 	userOrgs, err := fetchUserOrganizations(r.Context(), token.AccessToken)
 	if err != nil {

docs/superpowers/plans/2026-04-02-github-user-fake-email.md

@@ -0,0 +1,73 @@
+# Plan: Fake email shim + HTMX error display for sponsor-panel
+
+## Context
+
+GitHub users without a public email address hit an "Email address required. Please update your profile." error when requesting a Thoth token. Additionally, error responses from HTMX POST handlers never appear in the card because HTMX is configured to not swap 4xx/5xx responses (`responseHandling: [{ code: "[45]..", swap: false, error: true }]` in htmx.js:64).
+
+## Changes
+
+### 1. Generate fake email at OAuth callback (`cmd/sponsor-panel/oauth.go`)
+
+After line 531 (after `ghUser` is fetched successfully), add:
+
+```go
+if ghUser.Email == "" {
+    ghUser.Email = ghUser.Login + "@fake-address.github"
+    slog.Info("callbackHandler: generated fake email for user", "login", ghUser.Login, "email", ghUser.Email)
+}
+```
+
+This prevents new users from ever storing an empty email.
+
+### 2. Generate fake email at token issuance (`cmd/sponsor-panel/handlers.go`, lines 352-356)
+
+Replace the error block:
+
+```go
+if user.Email == "" {
+    slog.Error(...)
+    renderError(w, "Email address required...", http.StatusBadRequest)
+    return
+}
+```
+
+With fake email generation + DB save:
+
+```go
+if user.Email == "" {
+    user.Email = user.Login + "@fake-address.github"
+    slog.Info("thothTokenHandler: generated fake email for user", "user_id", user.ID, "login", user.Login, "email", user.Email)
+    if err := s.db.Save(user).Error; err != nil {
+        slog.Error("thothTokenHandler: failed to save fake email", "err", err, "user_id", user.ID)
+        renderError(w, "Failed to save user email")
+        return
+    }
+}
+```
+
+This covers existing users who already have empty emails in the DB.
+
+### 3. Fix `renderError` to return 200 (`cmd/sponsor-panel/handlers.go`, lines 303-308)
+
+Change `renderError` to always return HTTP 200. HTMX won't swap non-2xx responses, so the current 4xx/5xx status codes mean error messages never appear in the `#thoth-result`, `#invite-result`, or `#logo-result` divs. The error styling is already handled by `FormResult(message, false)` rendering a red alert box.
+
+```go
+func renderError(w http.ResponseWriter, message string) {
+    w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "text/html")
+    w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
+    templates.FormResult(message, false).Render(context.Background(), w)
+}
+```
+
+Remove the `statusCode` parameter from all call sites since it's no longer used.
+
+## Files to modify
+
+- `cmd/sponsor-panel/oauth.go` -- add fake email after line 531
+- `cmd/sponsor-panel/handlers.go` -- fake email at lines 352-356, fix `renderError` signature + all call sites
+
+## Verification
+
+1. `go build ./cmd/sponsor-panel/` compiles
+2. `go vet ./cmd/sponsor-panel/`
+3. `go test ./cmd/sponsor-panel/...`