ai.exa/exa

8.0

Fast, intelligent web search and web crawling. New mcp tool: Exa-code is a context tool for coding

streamable-httpai-ml web-scraping developer-tools search

Installation

Claude Desktop config (remote)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ai-exa-exa": {
      "type": "streamable-http",
      "url": "https://mcp.exa.ai/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Cursor config

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ai-exa-exa": {
      "url": "https://mcp.exa.ai/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Security Report

Score Breakdown

Description10

Permissions10

Behavior6

Stability--

Findings (5)

medium

network-access

Remote HTTP Endpoint with Unverified Authentication

Server uses streamable-http transport connecting to a remote URL (https://mcp.exa.ai/mcp). Remote endpoints inherently accept connections from the internet and require proper authentication/authorization mechanisms. No authentication details are documented.

medium

excessive-scope

Broad Capability Claims Without Tool Visibility

Server claims both 'web search' and 'web crawling' capabilities, which are inherently broad operations. Additionally mentions 'Exa-code' as a 'context tool for coding' without clear scope boundaries. Tool definitions are not available for verification, making it impossible to assess actual permissions and constraints.

low

vague-description

Incomplete Description

The description is fragmented and lacks clarity about the relationship between 'web search/crawling' and 'Exa-code'. The mention of 'Exa-code' appears disconnected from the main description and lacks explanation of what 'context tool for coding' means.

info

excessive-tools

Tool Definitions Unavailable for Audit

Tool definitions could not be fetched from the server, preventing detailed analysis of input validation, prompt injection risks, and capability constraints. This limits the security audit's completeness.

info

vague-description

Semantic Analysis Summary

The Exa MCP server presents moderate security concerns primarily due to its remote HTTP endpoint without documented authentication and broad capability claims (web search, crawling, coding context) that cannot be fully verified. While the server has a legitimate GitHub repository providing some trust signal, the inability to inspect tool definitions and the vague description of capabilities limit confidence in its safe operation. The remote transport type requires careful consideration of network exposure and authentication mechanisms.

Last scanned 1mo ago

Details

Version: 3.1.3
Transport: streamable-http
Capabilities
Repository: exa-labs/exa-mcp-server