theHarvester MCP

theHarvester MCP Server: OSINT email and subdomain discovery for AI agents

theHarvester MCP Server wraps theHarvester in a Model Context Protocol server so Claude Code, Cursor, or any MCP client can harvest public emails, subdomains, hostnames, IPs, and LinkedIn profiles for a domain on demand. Multi-arch Docker image, stdio transport, no API keys for the default free sources.

It is built for lead generation and prospecting: ask your agent "find public contacts for example.com" and it calls the harvest tool, which fans out to sources like crtsh, hackertarget, urlscan, and DuckDuckGo, then returns structured JSON. Harvests run asynchronously with configurable concurrency and timeouts, and results stay retrievable by harvest ID.

Quick start

docker pull devkind/theharvester-mcp

Add to .mcp.json (Claude Code) or your MCP client config:

{

"mcpServers": { "theharvester": { "command": "docker", "args": ["run", "--rm", "-i", "devkind/theharvester-mcp"] } } }

Then ask your agent: *"Harvest example.com using free sources."*

Install in your client

Requirements:

• Docker
• Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code, Windsurf, or any other MCP client
• No API keys for the default free sources

Standard config works in most MCP clients:

{

"mcpServers": { "theharvester": { "command": "docker", "args": [ "run", "--rm", "-i", "devkind/theharvester-mcp" ] } } }

Claude Desktop

Follow the MCP install guide and add the standard config above to your claude_desktop_config.json.

Claude Code

Run:

claude mcp add theharvester -- docker run --rm -i devkind/theharvester-mcp

Or add the standard config above to .mcp.json in your project root.

Cursor

Click the button to install:

Or install manually:

Go to Cursor Settings -> MCP -> Add new MCP Server. Name it "theHarvester MCP", use command type with the command docker run --rm -i devkind/theharvester-mcp.

VS Code

Follow the MCP install guide and use the standard config above. You can also install with the VS Code CLI:

code --add-mcp '{"name":"theharvester","command":"docker","args":["run","--rm","-i","devkind/theharvester-mcp"]}'

Windsurf

Follow the Windsurf MCP documentation and use the standard config above.

Goose

Go to Advanced settings -> Extensions -> Add custom extension. Name it "theHarvester MCP", use type STDIO, and set the command to docker run --rm -i devkind/theharvester-mcp. Click "Add Extension".

LM Studio

Go to Program in the right sidebar -> Install -> Edit mcp.json. Use the standard config above.

Warp

Go to Settings -> AI -> Manage MCP Servers -> + Add to add an MCP Server. Use the standard config above, or use the slash command /add-mcp in the Warp prompt and paste it.

Tools

Seven sources work with no API key: crtsh, hackertarget, dnsdumpster, rapiddns, urlscan, otx, and duckduckgo. Sources like shodan, censys, and virustotal need keys configured in the theHarvester install.

Example call and output

Tool call: harvest with {"domain": "example.com", "sources": "free"}

{

"harvest_id": "a1b2c3d4", "domain": "example.com", "status": "completed", "duration_seconds": 42.5, "sources_used": ["crtsh", "hackertarget", "urlscan"], "summary": {"emails": 3, "hosts": 27, "ips": 12, "linkedin": 2}, "emails": ["info@example.com", "support@example.com", "press@example.com"], "hosts": ["www.example.com", "api.example.com", "mail.example.com"] }

Output is illustrative; real counts depend on the target domain and source availability. The harvest tool accepts domain (required), sources (free, all, or a comma-separated list), limit, and timeout; invalid domains are rejected before any network call.

Configuration

Environment variables: THEHARVESTER_TIMEOUT (default 120s), THEHARVESTER_MAX_CONCURRENT (default 2), THEHARVESTER_OUTPUT_DIR (default /app/output).

Claude Code skill

This repo ships a skill at skills/harvester/SKILL.md. When the repo is used as a Claude Code plugin source (or skills directory), the skill is auto-discovered and teaches the agent when and how to run OSINT harvests — tool names (harvest, get_harvest_results, list_active_harvests, list_sources), recommended sources, and the report format to return.

Responsible use

theHarvester collects only publicly published information, but OSINT tooling attracts scrutiny. Use this server only on domains you own or have written permission to research, and for lawful purposes such as security assessment, asset inventory, and business prospecting against public business contact data. Respect each source's terms of service and applicable privacy and anti-spam law (GDPR, CAN-SPAM, PECA) when acting on harvested contacts. The maintainers are not responsible for misuse.

Roadmap

• Official MCP Registry listing (io.github.devkindhq/theharvester-mcp)
• Docker MCP Registry and Glama listings
• Pinned theHarvester version releases alongside latest (devkind/theharvester-mcp: is built with theHarvester 4.11.1, latest tracks the newest release)
• CI workflow building and pushing the multi-arch image on tag (untested until the first tag)

License and contributing

MIT © Devkind. Issues and PRs welcome, see CONTRIBUTING.md and SECURITY.md.

Built by Devkind. Maintained by Kazim Ali.

Need OSINT and lead generation built into your stack?

Devkind builds custom MCP servers, AI agent workflows and commerce integrations. If you want this kind of harvesting wired into your CRM, enrichment or outreach tooling, talk to Devkind or email hello@devkind.com.au.