--- title: "Best LLM for cybersecurity, October 2026" canonical: https://uplinkswitch.ai/blog/best-llm-for-cybersecurity generated: 2026-10-22T18:12:23.817Z source: https://uplinkswitch.ai/blog/best-llm-for-cybersecurity base_url: https://api.uplinkswitch.com/v1 --- # Best LLM for cybersecurity: least refusals, by API, October 2026 The best LLM for cybersecurity work ranked by refusals, context window and price per million tokens, with the model ids to plug into your tools. October 22, 2026·UplinkSwitch·[All posts](https://uplinkswitch.ai/blog) The best LLM for cybersecurity answers the question you asked and fits the whole log in context. The pages that rank for this search on 2026-10-22 mostly list tools and benchmarks. The threads under them complain about refusals, and none of the pages we read put a price per million tokens next to a model. This post ranks by three things: whether the model answers security questions without a verification program, its context window, and its price per million tokens. Each pick carries its exact model id, and every price is read from the live catalog. Our hub for [uncensored AI for cybersecurity](https://uplinkswitch.ai/red-teaming) lists the builds made for this work. ## Best LLM for cybersecurity: quick picks 11 models, listed in the order of the sections below. The first eight need no application and no review; the last three are the models the threads name. | Model | Context | In / out per 1M | Daily check | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [Uplink Red Team (Pro)](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/glm-5.3-redteam)`glm-5.3-redteam`Triage and reports from a bare prompt | 1,000,000 | $1.50 / $6.00 | [Same fingerprint since Oct 22](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof#glm-5.3-redteam) | | [Uplink Red Team (Flash)](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/deepseek-v4.1-flash-redteam)`deepseek-v4.1-flash-redteam`The same job on a faster build | 1,048,576 | $0.90 / $3.00 | [Same fingerprint since Oct 22](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof#deepseek-v4.1-flash-redteam) | | [GLM-5.3 Flash Cybersecurity](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/glm-5.3-flash-cybersecurity)`glm-5.3-flash-cybersecurity`A security tune, plain prompts in | 1,048,576 | $0.525 / $1.75 | [Same fingerprint since Oct 22](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof#glm-5.3-flash-cybersecurity) | | [CyberHeabsy](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/cyberheabsy)`cyberheabsy`Tool-calling agents on a low-refusal model | 1,048,576 | $5.25 / $15.75 | [Same fingerprint since Oct 21](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof#cyberheabsy) | | [GLM-5.3 Uncensored](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/glm-5.3-uncensored)`glm-5.3-uncensored`Your own system prompt on GLM-5.3 | 1,000,000 | $0.291 / $0.873 | [Same fingerprint since Oct 12](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof#glm-5.3-uncensored) | | [DeepSeek V4.1 Flash Abliterated](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/deepseek-v4.1-flash-abliterated)`deepseek-v4.1-flash-abliterated`Abliterated DeepSeek weights | 1,048,576 | $0.875 / $1.75 | [No answer at the last check](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof#deepseek-v4.1-flash-abliterated) | | [Kimi K3 Uncensored](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/kimi-k3-uncensored)`kimi-k3-uncensored`Kimi K3 without a filter | 262,144 | $5.745 / $28.68 | [Same fingerprint since Oct 22](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof#kimi-k3-uncensored) | | [DeepSeek V4 Pro Uncensored](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/deepseek-v4-pro-uncensored)`deepseek-v4-pro-uncensored`DeepSeek V4 Pro without a filter | 1,048,576 | $1.00 / $2.00 | [Same fingerprint since Oct 12](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof#deepseek-v4-pro-uncensored) | | [Claude Opus 5.5](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/claude-opus-5-5)`claude-opus-5-5`Hard analysis, if your company is enrolled in the program | 1,000,000 | $2.80 / $10.00 | [Same fingerprint since Oct 13](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof#claude-opus-5-5) | | [Kimi K3](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/kimi-k3)`kimi-k3`Named in the r/cybersecurity thread | 1,048,576 | $0.90 / $4.50 | [Same fingerprint since Oct 12](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof#kimi-k3) | | [Grok 4.6](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/grok-4.6)`grok-4.6`Named in the r/cybersecurity thread | 500,000 | $0.60 / $1.80 | [Same fingerprint since Oct 20](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof#grok-4.6) | Prices are USD per million tokens at the live rate. A build with no window of its own listed shows the window of the model it is built on. Daily check is the latest real-model check result. Once a UTC day, every model on the key gets the same fixed test prompt on the [real-model check](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof). The input token count is a tokenizer fingerprint, so a swapped model or added hidden instructions shows as a changed count. At the last check, 10 of the 11 models in the table were stable. ## How we ranked these models - **Answers without a program.** A model counts if you call it with a key and a prepaid balance. Anthropic put review, access tiers and data retention between you and its full cyber capabilities on 2026-10-06, and the threads treat that as the problem. - **Context window.** Logs, scan output and source files are long. A 40-turn session resends the history on every turn, so the window sets how much fits. - **Price per million tokens.** Input and output are priced apart, and triage sends far more than it gets back. The worked session near the end turns the rates into a cost. We ran no exploit-quality benchmark or capture-the-flag score, so no pick claims to find more bugs than another. The threads disagree on quality, and the sections below say which models they name. ## Uplink Red Team (Pro): the default for triage and reports [Uplink Red Team (Pro)](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/glm-5.3-redteam) (`glm-5.3-redteam`) is our own security-focused uncensored build with a short security-analyst instruction sent ahead of your prompt. The instruction sets the role and puts the deliverable first. It cites CVEs, CWEs and ATT&CK techniques and names the tools practitioners use. It also separates evidence from inference and pairs each finding with proof-of-concept code and the fix. When details are missing it states its assumptions and answers. The instruction is not charged and never appears in the answer. Your own system prompt follows it and wins on any conflict. If you send a system prompt on every request, call a general uncensored build instead. It costs $1.50 in and $6.00 out per million tokens, with a 1,000,000-token window. The 40-turn session priced below comes to $0.552. ## Uplink Red Team (Flash): the same job on a faster build [Uplink Red Team (Flash)](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/deepseek-v4.1-flash-redteam) (`deepseek-v4.1-flash-redteam`) carries the same analyst instruction on our faster, security-focused uncensored build, tuned for long log reviews and penetration-testing work. Pick it for log reading, malware-sample notes and report writing when you want a second model's answer to the same task. Send one prompt to both Red Team ids and compare. It has a 1,048,576-token window and costs $0.90 in and $3.00 out per million tokens. ## GLM-5.3 Flash Cybersecurity: a security tune, plain prompts in [GLM-5.3 Flash Cybersecurity](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/glm-5.3-flash-cybersecurity) (`glm-5.3-flash-cybersecurity`) is a security tune of GLM-5.3 Flash, built on an uncensored build of the model. A plain request gets a plain answer, and nothing is added to your prompt. It costs $0.525 in and $1.75 out per million tokens, with a 1,048,576-token window. Pick it when you write the whole prompt yourself and want a model named for the job. ## CyberHeabsy: for agents that call tools [CyberHeabsy](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/cyberheabsy) (`cyberheabsy`) is Heabsy AI's low-refusal model for security research and red-team practice. Its card, released 2026-09-25, describes abliteration followed by a repair adapter that restores the tool-call format abliteration breaks. On Heabsy's own runs of 2026-09-25, 99.6% of its tool calls parsed strictly, against 88.0% for a standard abliteration of the same base. It refused 1 of the 250 safe prompts in XSTest. That matters for scan-and-exploit agents, where one malformed call ends a run. It costs $5.25 in and $15.75 out per million tokens, with a 1,048,576-token window. ## The general uncensored builds, for your own prompts Red Team is a prelude on top of an uncensored build. If your agent framework already sends its own system prompt, call the build directly so the prompt you send is the whole prompt. The [uncensored LLM API](https://uplinkswitch.ai/uncensored) page lists every build on the key. - [GLM-5.3 Uncensored](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/glm-5.3-uncensored) (`glm-5.3-uncensored`): $0.291 in and $0.873 out per million tokens, 1,000,000-token window. Your own system prompt on GLM-5.3. - [DeepSeek V4.1 Flash Abliterated](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/deepseek-v4.1-flash-abliterated) (`deepseek-v4.1-flash-abliterated`): $0.875 in and $1.75 out per million tokens, 1,048,576-token window. Abliterated DeepSeek weights. - [Kimi K3 Uncensored](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/kimi-k3-uncensored) (`kimi-k3-uncensored`): $5.745 in and $28.68 out per million tokens, 262,144-token window. Kimi K3 without a filter. - [DeepSeek V4 Pro Uncensored](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/deepseek-v4-pro-uncensored) (`deepseek-v4-pro-uncensored`): $1.00 in and $2.00 out per million tokens, 1,048,576-token window. DeepSeek V4 Pro without a filter. Pick GLM-5.3 Uncensored or DeepSeek V4.1 Flash Abliterated for high-volume log work, where input tokens dominate the bill. Pick Kimi K3 Uncensored when you want Moonshot's model without a filter. ## Claude Opus 5.5: strong, behind a verification program [Claude Opus 5.5](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/claude-opus-5-5) (`claude-opus-5-5`) is the model the r/cybersecurity threads reach for on complex tasks. Google's results on 2026-10-22 show the top answer in one thread: use Claude, if your company is in the cyber verification program. Anthropic announced that [Cyber Verification Program](https://www.anthropic.com/news/cyber-verification-program) on 2026-10-06 (read 2026-10-22). It has three tiers. Defense Access covers SOC work, incident response, malware reverse engineering and vulnerability validation, and individuals can apply. Red Team Access adds authorized penetration testing, is open to organizations only, and takes a few weeks to review. Specialized Access has the fewest blocks and an in-depth review with the US government. Enrolled organizations accept data retention. For everyone else, Anthropic says malware analysis or exploit validation on generally available models may be interrupted by its safety classifiers. A popular comment in the other thread, with more than 140 upvotes, says the company is hostile to practitioners even with the program. Read the program page for current terms. On the key it costs $2.80 in and $10.00 out per million tokens, against $4.00 and $20.00 at Anthropic's list price, with a 1,000,000-token window. That is 30% under Anthropic's list price on input and 50% on output. ## Kimi K3 and Grok: the models the threads name The r/cybersecurity thread "Best LLM for security professionals" (September 2026, 100+ comments) names Kimi K3 as excellent and Grok 4.6 as the top model its commenters tested. We read it through Google's results page on 2026-10-22. [Kimi K3](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/kimi-k3) (`kimi-k3`) costs $0.90 in and $4.50 out per million tokens, against $3.00 and $15.00 at Moonshot AI's list price, with a 1,048,576-token window. [Grok 4.6](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/grok-4.6) (`grok-4.6`) costs $0.60 in and $1.80 out per million tokens, against $2.00 and $6.00 at xAI's list price, with a 500,000-token window. Neither is a build made to answer without refusing, and we have not measured their refusals. Treat them as the accuracy reference the thread gives, then compare an uncensored build on your own prompts. ## Best open-source LLM for cybersecurity: Foundation-Sec 8B Reasoning Cisco released [Foundation-Sec-8B-Reasoning](https://huggingface.co/fdtn-ai/Foundation-Sec-8B-Reasoning) on 2026-01-28 (model card read 2026-10-22). It has open weights on a Llama-3.1-8B backbone, and Cisco's paper calls it the first open-source native reasoning model for cybersecurity. | Benchmark | Foundation-Sec-8B-Reasoning | Llama 3.1 8B | GPT-5-Nano | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | CTI-MCQA | 0.691 | 0.607 | 0.688 | | CTI-RCM | 0.753 | 0.531 | 0.672 | | CTI-VSP | 0.856 | 0.811 | 0.822 | | CTI-Reasoning | 0.411 | 0.335 | 0.431 | Cisco's model card, 0-shot at temperature 0.3, read 2026-10-22. Higher is better. It beats GPT-5-Nano on three of the four tasks and trails it on CTI-Reasoning. Its safety score is the selling point: 93.00% on HarmBench against 62.75% for Llama-3.1-8B-Instruct, and 98.25% with LlamaGuard in front. The card recommends LlamaGuard and human oversight. That makes it the opposite of a least-refusals pick. Use it on your own hardware for threat-intelligence classification and vulnerability mapping. It is not on our key, so use a build above when the job is an exploit question. ## What refuses what, as of 2026-10-22 - **Anthropic.** Generally available models can interrupt malware analysis and exploit validation. The verification program lowers blocking for approved applicants (anthropic.com, announced 2026-10-06). - **OpenAI.** It runs a program called [Trusted Access for Cyber](https://openai.com/index/trusted-access-for-cyber/). Its page returned an access error when we tried on 2026-10-22, so read its terms there. - **Cisco Foundation-Sec.** Safety-aligned by design, scored on HarmBench as above. - **Deep Hat.** Kindo's renamed WhiteRabbitNeo describes itself as an uncensored cybersecurity model. Its pages, read 2026-10-22, show a contact-sales route and no API price. The [WhiteRabbitNeo alternatives](https://uplinkswitch.ai/blog/whiterabbitneo-alternative) post covers it. - **Our builds.** The first eight picks in the table need no application. You call them with a key. ## What a vulnerability-triage session costs One session here is 40 turns at 6,000 input and 800 output tokens each. That is 240,000 tokens in and 32,000 out, with no prompt caching assumed. | Model | In / out per 1M | One session | Per $20 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [Uplink Red Team (Pro)](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/glm-5.3-redteam)`glm-5.3-redteam` | $1.50 / $6.00 | $0.552 | 36 sessions | | [Uplink Red Team (Flash)](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/deepseek-v4.1-flash-redteam)`deepseek-v4.1-flash-redteam` | $0.90 / $3.00 | $0.312 | 64 sessions | | [Claude Opus 5.5](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/claude-opus-5-5)`claude-opus-5-5` | $2.80 / $10.00 | $0.992 | 20 sessions | Computed from the live catalog each time this page rebuilds. The same session costs $0.992 on Claude Opus 5.5, or $1.60 at Anthropic's list price, and $0.552 on Uplink Red Team (Pro). A pentest engagement runs many such sessions, so the gap compounds. Every id here works from the OpenAI or Anthropic SDK you already use; the [SDK guide](https://uplinkswitch.ai/guides/sdks) has the two lines to change. For PentestGPT, Strix and similar agents, the [pentest agents setup](https://uplinkswitch.ai/blog/pentest-agents-api-setup) lists each tool's variables. ## Questions **What is the best AI model for cybersecurity?** It depends on whether you can pass a verification program and what a session may cost. Claude Opus 5.5 is the model the r/cybersecurity threads name for hard analysis, and Anthropic gates its full cyber capabilities behind a program announced on 2026-10-06. Uplink Red Team (Pro) (glm-5.3-redteam) answers from a bare prompt with no enrollment, at $1.50 in and $6.00 out per million tokens. See [uncensored AI for cybersecurity](https://uplinkswitch.ai/red-teaming). **Which LLM is best for penetration testing?** Pick the model that answers an exploit question without a refusal and holds your scan output in context. Uplink Red Team (Pro) adds a security-analyst instruction ahead of your prompt, and its 1,000,000-token window holds a long engagement log. If your pentest agent sends its own system prompt, call a general uncensored build instead. See [pentest agents API setup](https://uplinkswitch.ai/blog/pentest-agents-api-setup). **Can LLMs be used in cybersecurity?** Yes. Teams use them for log triage, vulnerability write-ups, malware analysis, threat-intelligence classification and report drafting. Cisco scores its Foundation-Sec models on threat-intelligence tasks such as root-cause mapping and vulnerability severity prediction. A person still reviews the output before it reaches a client. **Which AI is best for pentesting?** The agent tools in the results for this search, such as PentestGPT and Strix, each need a model behind them. For that slot, Uplink Red Team (Pro) costs $0.552 for a 40-turn triage session at the live rate. The setup post lists each tool’s environment variables. See [pentest agents API setup](https://uplinkswitch.ai/blog/pentest-agents-api-setup). **Can pentesting be replaced by AI?** Nothing we read shows it replacing a tester. A r/cybersecurity thread in the results on 2026-10-22 argues that most AI pentesting tools do nothing a Burp license does not already do. A model speeds up triage, reading and reporting, and a person still scopes the engagement and signs the findings. **Which local LLM is best for cybersecurity?** Cisco’s Foundation-Sec 8B Reasoning has open weights on Hugging Face and posts the benchmark numbers in the table above. It is safety-aligned, so it suits classification and analysis more than exploit work. The builds on this page run by API. See [WhiteRabbitNeo alternatives by API](https://uplinkswitch.ai/blog/whiterabbitneo-alternative). **Which LLM has the least refusals for security work?** The Uncensored and Abliterated builds on this page answer security questions without a verification program. Red Team builds add the analyst instruction on top. Anthropic’s models and Cisco’s Foundation-Sec are built to refuse some of this work. See [the uncensored LLM API](https://uplinkswitch.ai/uncensored). [Get a key](https://uplinkswitch.ai/console): prepaid from $10, no subscription, 30-day price lock. ## Related - [Uncensored AI for cybersecurity](https://uplinkswitch.ai/red-teaming) - [WhiteRabbitNeo alternatives by API](https://uplinkswitch.ai/blog/whiterabbitneo-alternative) - [Strix, HackingBuddyGPT and PentestGPT setup](https://uplinkswitch.ai/blog/pentest-agents-api-setup) - [Uncensored and abliterated models on one key](https://uplinkswitch.ai/uncensored) - [Uplink Red Team (Pro)](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/glm-5.3-redteam) - [Uplink Red Team (Flash)](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/deepseek-v4.1-flash-redteam) - [GLM-5.3 Flash Cybersecurity](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/glm-5.3-flash-cybersecurity) - [Kimi K3 Uncensored](https://uplinkswitch.ai/models/kimi-k3-uncensored) - [SDK setup](https://uplinkswitch.ai/guides/sdks) - [Daily real-model check](https://uplinkswitch.ai/proof)