Integration Guide

Zero-Trust AI Coding for Cursor

Cursor sends your entire codebase context to AI models. Pretense intercepts every request and mutates proprietary identifiers before they leave your machine.

under 10msadded latency
Local-firstnothing leaves your machine
5 minsetup time
Byte-exactreversal guaranteed

How to Protect Cursor in 3 Steps

One environment variable. No code changes. No workflow disruption.

01

Install Pretense

Install the Pretense proxy globally. It runs locally and intercepts LLM API calls.

02

Configure Cursor

Point Cursor at the Pretense proxy by setting the API base URL in Cursor preferences.

03

Code Freely

Every Cursor AI request now flows through Pretense. Proprietary names are mutated, secrets are blocked.

What Cursor Actually Sends to the LLM

Pretense transforms your real identifiers into synthetic tokens before transmission. The LLM sees structure and logic, not your proprietary names.

Without Pretense: raw identifiers exposed
// Before Pretense mutation
async function getUserPaymentToken(userId: string) {
  return await stripeClient.createToken(userId, STRIPE_SECRET);
}

Your function names, secrets, and architecture are transmitted verbatim.

With Pretense: synthetic identifiers only
// After Pretense mutation (what the LLM sees)
async function _fn4a2b(_v8c3d: string) {
  return await _v2f1a._fn9e4b(_v8c3d, _v7d2c);
}

Structure intact. LLM quality preserved. Your IP stays private.

After the LLM responds, Pretense reverses every mutation. You receive real, working code with your original identifiers restored byte-for-byte.

Quick Setup for Cursor

terminal
$ npm install -g pretense
$ pretense init
$ pretense start
NOTE

Set OPENAI_BASE_URL=http://localhost:9339 in Cursor settings

Frequently Asked Questions

Does this slow down Cursor?

Pretense adds under 10ms of latency. Mutation happens in-memory with no network round trips.

Will Cursor AI suggestions still work?

Yes. Mutation preserves code structure. LLMs reason about syntax and patterns, not variable names.

Does Pretense store my code?

Never. Pretense is local-first. Nothing is stored, logged, or transmitted to Pretense servers.

Protect Cursor in 5 Minutes

No code changes. No workflow disruption. One environment variable and Pretense intercepts every request.

No credit card required. 30-second setup. Local-first, nothing leaves your machine.

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