How do I install the cyntrisec/cyntrisec-cli MCP server?

Add the following block to your claude_desktop_config.json under mcpServers: "mcpServers": { "cyntrisec-cli": { "command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "cyntrisec/cyntrisec-cli"] } }

What does cyntrisec/cyntrisec-cli do?

🐍 🏠 - Local-first AWS security analyzer that discovers attack paths and generates remediations using graph theory.

Cyntrisec CLI

Historical pre-company project. cyntrisec-cli was created before Cyntrisec narrowed its company focus to EphemeralML and AIR v1. It is not a current Cyntrisec product, support surface, or commercial offering. The PyPI package name cyntrisec, CLI command cyntrisec, and MCP server ID io.github.cyntrisec/cyntrisec are retained only to avoid breaking historical installs.

image-download

[!CAUTION] Historical Software Disclaimer: This tool is no longer an active Cyntrisec product. It is provided "as is", without warranty of any kind. While the CLI is a read-only analysis tool by default, the user assumes all responsibility for any actions taken based on its findings. Always review generated remediation plans and Terraform code before application.

Historical AWS capability graph analysis and attack path discovery CLI.

A read-only CLI tool that historically:

Scans AWS infrastructure via AssumeRole
Builds a capability graph (IAM, network, dependencies)
Discovers attack paths from internet to sensitive targets
Prioritizes fixes by ROI (security impact + cost savings)
Identifies unused capabilities (blast radius reduction)
Outputs deterministic JSON with proof chains

Demo

Watch how to discover attack paths and generate fixes using natural language with Claude MCP.

Architecture

+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|                                   CYNTRISEC CLI                                   |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| CLI Layer (Typer)                                                                 |
|   scan   analyze   cuts   waste   report   comply   can   diff   serve   ...      |
+-----------------------------+----------------------------------------------------+
| Core Engine                 | Storage (local)                                     |
|  - AWS collectors           |  ~/.cyntrisec/scans/<scan_id>/                      |
|  - Normalization/schema     |    snapshot.json, assets.json, relationships.json   |
|  - GraphBuilder -> AwsGraph |    findings.json, attack_paths.json                 |
|  - Path search -> paths     |  ~/.cyntrisec/scans/latest -> <scan_id>             |
|  - Min-cut + Cost (ROI)     |  (Windows fallback: latest is a file)               |
+-----------------------------+----------------------------------------------------+
| Outputs: JSON/agent, HTML report, remediation plan + Terraform hints              |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Data Flow

CLI (scan) --AssumeRole--> AWS Session --Describe/Get/List--> AWS APIs (read-only)
     |
     v
Collectors -> normalize -> Assets + Relationships -> AwsGraph
                                                |
                                                v
                                   Attack path search (BFS/DFS)
                                                |
                                                v
                                   Min-cut (remediation cuts)
                                                |
                                                v
                                      Cost engine (ROI)

Local artifacts: ~/.cyntrisec/scans/<scan_id>/*.json

Installation

pip install cyntrisec

Windows PATH Fix

If you see "cyntrisec is not recognized", the Scripts folder isn't on PATH:

# Option 1: Run with python -m
python -m cyntrisec --help

# Option 2: Add to PATH for current session
$env:PATH += ";$env:APPDATA\Python\Python311\Scripts"

Quick Start

Prerequisite: Ensure you have AWS CLI installed and configured with credentials (e.g., aws configure) or environment variables set. terraform is required for the setup step.

# 1. Create the read-only IAM role in your account
cyntrisec setup iam 123456789012 --output role.tf

# 2. Apply the Terraform
cd your-infra && terraform apply

# 3. Run a scan
cyntrisec scan --role-arn arn:aws:iam::123456789012:role/CyntrisecReadOnly

# 4. View attack paths
cyntrisec analyze paths --min-risk 0.5

# 5. Find minimal fixes (prioritized by ROI)
cyntrisec cuts --format json

# 6. Generate HTML report
cyntrisec report --output report.html

Commands

Core Analysis

Command	Description
`scan`	Scan AWS infrastructure
`analyze paths`	View attack paths
`analyze findings`	View security findings
`analyze stats`	View scan statistics
`analyze business`	Business entrypoint analysis
`report`	Generate HTML/JSON report

Setup & Validation

Command	Description
`setup iam`	Generate IAM role Terraform
`validate-role`	Validate IAM role permissions

Remediation

Command	Description
`cuts`	Find minimal fixes (Cost & ROI prioritized)
`waste`	Find unused IAM permissions
`remediate`	Generate or optionally apply Terraform plans (gated)

Policy Testing

Command	Description
`can`	Test "can X access Y?"
`diff`	Compare scan snapshots
`comply`	Check CIS AWS / SOC2 compliance

Agentic Interface

Command	Description
`manifest`	Output machine-readable capabilities
`explain`	Natural language explanations
`ask`	Query scans in plain English
`serve`	Run as MCP server for AI agents

MCP Server Mode

The historical CLI can still run as an MCP server for compatibility with existing local setups:

# Install with MCP support (now included by default)
pip install cyntrisec

cyntrisec serve              # Start stdio server
cyntrisec serve --list-tools # List available tools

MCP Tools (15)

Category	Tool	Description
Discovery	`list_tools`	List all available tools
	`set_session_snapshot`	Set active snapshot for session
	`get_scan_summary`	Get summary of latest AWS scan
Assets	`get_assets`	Get assets with type/name filtering
	`get_relationships`	Get relationships between assets
	`get_findings`	Get security findings with severity filtering
Attack Paths	`get_attack_paths`	Get attack paths with risk scores
	`explain_path`	Detailed hop-by-hop path breakdown
	`explain_finding`	Detailed finding explanation
Remediation	`get_remediations`	Find optimal fixes for attack paths
	`get_terraform_snippet`	Generate Terraform code for remediation
Access	`check_access`	Test if principal can access resource
	`get_unused_permissions`	Find unused IAM permissions
Compliance	`check_compliance`	Check CIS AWS or SOC 2 compliance
	`compare_scans`	Compare scan snapshots

Claude Desktop

MacOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "cyntrisec": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": ["-m", "cyntrisec", "serve"]
    }
  }
}

Claude Code (CLI)

Run the following command to configure the server:

claude mcp add cyntrisec -- python -m cyntrisec serve

Google Gemini / Antigravity

Locate your agent configuration (e.g., ~/.gemini/antigravity/mcp_config.json) and add:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "cyntrisec": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": ["-m", "cyntrisec", "serve"]
    }
  }
}

Trust & Safety

Read-Only Guarantees

This tool makes read-only API calls to your AWS account. The IAM role should have only Describe*, Get*, List* permissions.

No Data Exfiltration

All data stays on your local machine. Nothing is sent to external servers. Scan results are stored in ~/.cyntrisec/scans/.

No Auto-Remediation (Default Safe Mode)

By default, Cyntrisec is read-only and does not modify your AWS infrastructure.

It analyzes your account using read-only APIs.
It can generate remediation artifacts (e.g., Terraform modules) for you to review.
It does not apply changes automatically.

Optional Remediation Execution (Explicit Opt-In)

Cyntrisec includes an explicitly gated path that can execute Terraform only if you intentionally enable it.

This mode is:

Disabled by default
Requires --enable-unsafe-write-mode
Requires an additional explicit flag (e.g. --execute-terraform) to run Terraform
Intended for controlled environments (sandbox / CI with approvals), not unattended production

If you do not pass these flags, Cyntrisec will never run terraform apply.

Write Operations

Cyntrisec makes no AWS write API calls during scanning and analysis.

The only supported "write" behavior is optional execution of Terraform locally on your machine, and only when explicitly enabled via unsafe flags.

Every AWS API call is logged in CloudTrail under session name cyntrisec-cli.

Trust & Permissions

Cyntrisec runs with a read-only IAM role. Generate the recommended policy with cyntrisec setup iam <ACCOUNT_ID> and keep permissions to Describe*, Get*, and List*. Live modes (waste --live, can --live) require extra IAM permissions; the generated policy and docs cover those additions.

Output Format

Primary output is JSON to stdout. When stdout is not a TTY, the CLI automatically switches to JSON:

cyntrisec analyze paths --format json | jq '.paths[] | select(.risk_score > 0.7)'

Agent-friendly output wraps results in a structured envelope:

cyntrisec analyze paths --format agent

{
  "schema_version": "1.0",
  "status": "success",
  "data": {...},
  "artifact_paths": {...},
  "suggested_actions": [...]
}

Exit Codes

Code	Meaning
0	Success / compliant
1	Findings / regressions / denied
2	Usage error
3	Transient error (retry)
4	Internal error

Use in CI/CD:

cyntrisec scan --role-arn $ROLE_ARN || exit 1
cyntrisec diff || echo "Regressions detected"

Storage

Scan results are stored locally:

~/.cyntrisec/
|-- scans/
|   |-- 2026-01-17_123456_123456789012/
|   |   |-- snapshot.json
|   |   |-- assets.json
|   |   |-- relationships.json
|   |   |-- findings.json
|   |   `-- attack_paths.json
|   `-- latest -> 2026-01-17_...
`-- config.yaml

Versioning

This project follows Semantic Versioning. See CHANGELOG.md for release notes.

License

Apache-2.0

cyntrisec/cyntrisec-cli

Quick Install

Documentation Overview