io.github.certindex/certindex-mcp
Certificate Transparency search for AI agents: certs, subdomains, issuance history, expiry.
Install
Add this to your client's MCP configuration (Claude Desktop: claude_desktop_config.json; Cursor: .cursor/mcp.json; VS Code and others use the same "mcpServers" shape).
certindex-mcpclaude mcp add certindex-mcp -e 'CERTINDEX_API_KEY=<your certindex_api_key>' -- uvx certindex-mcp==0.2.0
{
"mcpServers": {
"certindex-mcp": {
"command": "uvx",
"args": [
"certindex-mcp==0.2.0"
],
"env": {
"CERTINDEX_API_KEY": "<your certindex_api_key>"
}
}
}
}
Environment variables
CERTINDEX_API_KEYrequired secret CertIndex API key (free tier at https://ctindex.io)
Documentation
From the project's README on GitHub, refreshed weekly. Links open on GitHub.
Contents
certindex-mcp
An MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that exposes CertIndex's Certificate Transparency search tools to any MCP-compatible client (Claude Desktop, the MCP Inspector, Continue, etc.).
CertIndex ingests certificates directly from public Certificate Transparency logs and serves them from its own index. Historical backfill is still in progress, so results, especially for older certificates, may be incomplete. This server wraps the public CertIndex REST API so an LLM can ask questions like:
- "List the TLS certificates CertIndex has indexed for
example.com." - "What subdomains has Let's Encrypt seen for
mycompany.io?" - "Show me certs expiring in the next 30 days for
api.mycompany.io." - "Pull the full PEM and CT log metadata for SHA-256
<fingerprint>."
Why this repo exists
The CertIndex monorepo bundles an MCP server (mounted at
https://api.ctindex.io/mcp) that talks directly to the production
Postgres index. This standalone package is a thin client-side
shim: it speaks MCP to your editor / agent and forwards every tool
call to the hosted CertIndex REST API over HTTPS. Two consequences:
- You don't need a copy of the index — sign up for a free API key at https://ctindex.io and you're done.
- The package has a tiny dependency footprint (
mcp,httpx,pydantic) — easy to audit, easy to vendor, no DB drivers.
Install
Version 0.3.0 uses MCP Python SDK 2.x (mcp>=2,<3) and Python 3.11+.
The console command, environment variables and ten tool names are unchanged.
For applications that must retain SDK 1.x, use certindex-mcp==0.2.1.
pip install certindex-mcp
Or with uvx for one-shot use:
uvx certindex-mcp
To install the latest development version from source instead:
pip install git+https://github.com/certindex/certindex-mcp
Quickstart — Claude Desktop
Add to ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
(macOS) or %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json (Windows):
{
"mcpServers": {
"certindex": {
"command": "uvx",
"args": ["certindex-mcp"],
"env": {
"CERTINDEX_API_KEY": "ctx_live_..."
}
}
}
}
Restart Claude Desktop. The ten CertIndex tools appear in the tool tray.
Tools
Ten tools, matching the hosted CertIndex MCP server 1:1:
| Tool | What it does | Notable parameters |
|---|---|---|
search_certificates | Search the CT index by domain, CN, issuer, SAN, validity, or wildcard status. | domain, cn, issuer, san, expired, is_wildcard, page/limit |
get_certificate | Fetch a single cert by SHA-256 fingerprint. | sha256, include_enrichment |
get_domain_certificates | Indexed certs for an exact domain. | valid_only, include_enrichment, include_signals (paid plans), page/limit |
get_subdomains | Enumerate unique subdomains seen in CT. | Offset (page/limit) or keyset cursor mode — pass cursor="" to start, then feed back each response's next_cursor |
get_latest_cert | Most recent currently-valid cert for a domain. | include_enrichment, include_signals, include_precerts (let precertificates compete for "latest") |
get_expiring_certs | Certs for a domain expiring within days days. | days |
submit_global_sweep | Submit an async, domain-less CN/SAN substring sweep of the entire index (POST /v1/sweeps). | cn/san_contains (3+ chars, at least one required), issuer, is_wildcard, is_precert, expired, first_seen_*/not_after_* date bounds, strict_attribution, resume_token (continuation past the result cap) |
get_sweep_results | Poll a sweep job and paginate its results when done (GET /v1/sweeps/{id}). | sweep_id, page/limit (up to 1,000) |
get_usage | Caller's tier, current usage, remaining quota, and entitlements. | — |
get_historical_backfill_status | Check / start the paid deep-history backfill for a domain. | domain |
Quickstart — MCP Inspector
export CERTINDEX_API_KEY=ctx_live_...
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector uvx certindex-mcp
Configuration
| Env var | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
CERTINDEX_API_KEY | (required) | Your CertIndex API key. Mint one at https://ctindex.io/app/keys |
CERTINDEX_BASE_URL | https://api.ctindex.io | Override for self-hosted deployments / staging |
CERTINDEX_TIMEOUT | 30 | Per-request HTTP timeout (seconds) |
Security
Input validation, rate-limit handling, and our supply-chain posture are documented in SECURITY.md. Please report vulnerabilities to security@ctindex.io rather than filing public issues.
Development
git clone https://github.com/certindex/certindex-mcp
cd certindex-mcp
pip install -e ".[dev]"
pytest
CI runs on Python 3.11 / 3.12 / 3.13 with both SDK 2.0.0 and the latest allowed 2.x release. It also installs the built wheel into a fresh environment and exercises initialization, tool enumeration and calls over real stdio. HTTP fixtures run on loopback; tests do not require production credentials.
License
MIT © CertIndex contributors.
Frequently asked questions
What is io.github.certindex/certindex-mcp?
Certificate Transparency search for AI agents: certs, subdomains, issuance history, expiry.
How do I install io.github.certindex/certindex-mcp?
It runs on your machine. In Claude Code: claude mcp add certindex-mcp -e 'CERTINDEX_API_KEY=<your certindex_api_key>' -- uvx certindex-mcp==0.2.0. For other clients, paste the JSON configuration from this page into their MCP settings.
Does io.github.certindex/certindex-mcp need an API key?
Yes. It expects CERTINDEX_API_KEY, which you set in its configuration.
Is io.github.certindex/certindex-mcp open source?
Yes. Its code is on GitHub under the MIT license.
Who maintains io.github.certindex/certindex-mcp?
It is published by certindex. AI.tn lists it but does not maintain or endorse it.
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