[Bug] Fake hardcoded stats shown on landing page when GitHub API fails

[akhilmodi29]

Bug Description

When the GitHub API fails or is rate-limited, the landing page displays
hardcoded fake stats (40 stars, 160 forks, 307 open issues, 30 contributors)
instead of real data. These invented numbers appear as genuine social proof
to every visitor.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Block api.github.com in your network or let it rate-limit
2. Visit the landing page /
3. Observe: stats show 40 stars, 160 forks, 307 issues — all fake

Expected Behavior

When the GitHub API is unavailable, stats should show 0 or nothing
rather than invented numbers.

Root Cause

The catch block in fetchRepoStats() inside src/app/page.tsx
returns hardcoded non-zero values instead of zeros.

Fix

Return all zeros in the fallback:

} catch {
  return {
    stars: 0,
    forks: 0,
    openIssues: 0,
    contributorCount: 0,
    goodFirstIssues: 0,
    contributors: [],
  };
}

File Affected

src/app/page.tsx — fetchRepoStats() function

[akhilmodi29]

can i be assigned to this issue ?

[mittalsonal]

I’d like to work on this issue under GSSoC 2026. I’m going to replace the hardcoded non-zero fallback repo stats with zero-safe values so the landing page never shows invented GitHub numbers when the upstream API fails or is rate-limited.

[mittalsonal]

Implemented this in PR #1325.

What changed:

• replaced the hardcoded non-zero fallback repo stats with zero-safe values
• stopped the landing page from showing invented stars, forks, issues, and contributor counts when the GitHub API fails
• kept the fix scoped to fetchRepoStats() in src/app/page.tsx

Verification:

• git diff --check

[github-actions]

✅ Closed as completed!

If DevTrack has been useful, a ⭐ star on the repo helps the project grow and reach more developers.

[akhilmodi29]

@Priyanshu-byte-coder Hi, I noticed the other PR was merged. I had started work earlier and wanted to understand if there was anything specific missing or different in my implementation so I can improve future contributions. Thanks!