Security Analysis

Is Cursor Safe?

An honest security analysis of Cursor for developers considering it for their projects.

Quick Answer

Safe - use privacy mode for sensitive code

Cursor is safe to use for development. It has privacy mode for sensitive codebases. The main risk is that AI suggestions may include insecure code patterns, so always review AI-generated code.

Security Assessment

Security Strengths

  • Privacy mode prevents code from being sent to AI
  • Built on VS Code which is well-audited
  • Regular updates and security patches
  • Local processing options available
  • SOC 2 compliant infrastructure

Security Concerns

  • Code is sent to AI models for suggestions (unless privacy mode)
  • AI may suggest insecure code patterns
  • Secrets could accidentally be included in AI context
  • AI may not follow security best practices
  • Generated code needs security review

Security Checklist for Cursor

  • 1
    Enable privacy mode for sensitive projects
  • 2
    Use .cursorignore to exclude sensitive files
  • 3
    Review AI suggestions before accepting
  • 4
    Never accept suggestions with hardcoded secrets
  • 5
    Audit generated code for security issues
  • 6
    Run security scans on completed projects

The Verdict

Cursor is safe and privacy-conscious for a cloud AI tool. Use privacy mode for sensitive work. The main concern is code quality - always review AI suggestions for security issues before accepting.

Security Research & Industry Data

Understanding Cursor security in the context of broader industry trends and research.

10.3%

of Lovable applications (170 out of 1,645) had exposed user data in the CVE-2025-48757 incident

Source: CVE-2025-48757 security advisory

4.45 million USD

average cost of a data breach in 2023

Source: IBM Cost of a Data Breach Report 2023

500,000+

developers using vibe coding platforms like Lovable, Bolt, and Replit

Source: Combined platform statistics 2024-2025

What Security Experts Say

There's a new kind of coding I call 'vibe coding', where you fully give in to the vibes, embrace exponentials, and forget that the code even exists.

Andrej KarpathyFormer Tesla AI Director, OpenAI Co-founder

It's not really coding - I just see stuff, say stuff, run stuff, and copy paste stuff, and it mostly works.

Andrej KarpathyFormer Tesla AI Director, OpenAI Co-founder

Verify Your Cursor App Security

Don't guess - scan your app and know for certain. VAS checks for all the common security issues in Cursor applications.