Cycode MCP Server Overview

Cycode’s MCP server bridges the gap between AI assistants and comprehensive security tooling by exposing a rich set of scanning capabilities as reusable, machine‑readable resources. It allows an AI assistant to query the state of a codebase, trigger vulnerability scans, and retrieve actionable findings without manual intervention. For developers, this means that security checks can be woven into natural language conversations, code reviews, or automated workflows, turning an AI assistant into a proactive security partner.

The server implements the full MCP contract: resources for repository metadata, tools that wrap Cycode’s CLI commands, prompts that format scan results, and a sampling strategy for handling large data sets. When an AI client invokes the “scan” tool, the server runs Cycode’s multi‑layered analysis—secret detection, IaC misconfigurations, SCA vulnerabilities, and SAST issues—and returns structured JSON that the assistant can present in a friendly format. This eliminates the need for developers to run CLI commands locally, parse logs, or navigate web dashboards; the assistant simply asks “What secrets are exposed in this PR?” and receives a concise, actionable answer.

Key capabilities include:

• Fine‑grained scan options: specify severity thresholds, enable monitoring, request package or license compliance data, and decide whether to include a full Cycode report.
• Contextual scanning modes: repository‑wide scans, path‑specific checks, Terraform plan validation, commit history diff scanning, and pre‑commit or pre‑push hooks.
• Result handling: soft fail flags, ignore lists (by value, SHA, path, rule, or package), and integration with company‑specific remediation guidelines.
• Reporting: generate SBOMs and detailed reports that can be embedded in chat or stored for audit purposes.

Real‑world use cases span continuous integration pipelines, pull request reviews, and code onboarding. In a CI/CD scenario, the AI assistant can trigger a pre‑push scan via MCP and surface any critical secrets before code merges. During a pull request, the assistant can answer “Are there any new IaC misconfigurations compared to the base branch?” by comparing scan results from the diff. For onboarding, new contributors can ask for a quick “SCA audit of my first commit,” and the assistant returns an up‑to‑date vulnerability list.

Integrating Cycode’s MCP server into AI workflows is straightforward: the assistant declares a dependency on the “cycode” resource, invokes the appropriate tool with parameters derived from user intent, and formats the returned JSON using a prompt. Because all interactions are expressed in plain text commands, developers can extend or customize the server without touching code. The result is a seamless blend of AI conversational power and enterprise‑grade security scanning, enabling teams to catch risks early, reduce manual toil, and maintain compliance across the entire software supply chain.