When a code scanning alert identifies a data flow problem, it means potentially untrusted data is being used in an unsafe way. To understand the vulnerability, you need to trace the path of this data from its origin (the source) to where it's used unsafely (the sink). The GitHub interface provides a specific control for this purpose. By clicking Show paths, you can expand the alert details to see a step-by-step visualization of the data's journey through the codebase, providing the necessary context to remediate the issue.

B. Security: This is the top-level tab in a repository's navigation where you access all security-related features, not a specific action taken within an alert.

C. Code scanning alerts: This is the link under the "Security" tab that takes you to the list of all alerts, not the control used to get more context on a single, specific alert.

1. GitHub Docs

"Managing code scanning alerts for your repository." Under the section "Viewing the details of an alert

" the documentation states: "For alerts that highlight a data-flow problem

you can also view the path from the data source to the sink. To view the data flow path

click Show paths." This directly confirms the function of the "Show paths" link for data flow analysis.

2. GitHub Docs

"About code scanning alerts." In the section "About data flow analysis

" it explains: "Data flow analysis finds potential security issues in code by tracking the flow of data from a source... to a sink... Code scanning shows you how the data travels from the source to the sink in the alert details." This establishes the concept that viewing the path is the primary way to get context.