---
name: perplexity-c4d4dd901bb9
description: Use Perplexity API for web-grounded AI search. Use when user needs up-to-date information with source citations, factual queries about current events, or research-style answers. Default when user mentions Perplexity or needs current information with references.
---

# Perplexity AI Search (Safe Edition)

## Overview

This skill provides access to the Perplexity API for web-grounded AI search. It combines large language models with real-time web search, providing accurate, up-to-date answers with source citations.

This is a **security-hardened** version that fixes command injection vulnerabilities found in the original `perplexity-bash` skill.

## When to Use Perplexity vs. Built-in Search

**Use Perplexity when:**
- You need **current information** (news, prices, events, recent developments)
- The user asks for **source citations** or references
- The user specifically mentions Perplexity or wants research-style answers

**Use built-in web search when:**
- Simple factual queries
- Quick information lookup
- Basic URL or content retrieval

## Model Selection Guide

| Model | Use Case | Cost |
|-------|----------|------|
| `sonar` | Default search, most queries | Low |
| `sonar-pro` | Advanced search, deeper understanding | Medium |
| `sonar-reasoning` | Complex multi-step reasoning | Medium |
| `sonar-reasoning-pro` | Advanced reasoning with deep content | High |

## Quick Start

### Basic Search

```bash
# Simple query (uses sonar by default)
scripts/perplexity_search.sh "What is the capital of Germany?"

# With a different model
scripts/perplexity_search.sh -m sonar-pro "Latest AI developments"

# Markdown format with citations
scripts/perplexity_search.sh -f markdown "Tesla stock analysis"
```

### Advanced Usage

```bash
# High context for comprehensive results
scripts/perplexity_search.sh -m sonar-reasoning -c high -f markdown \
  "Compare AI models performance benchmarks"

# With custom system prompt
scripts/perplexity_search.sh -s "You are a technology analyst." \
  "Analyze current tech trends"
```

## Options

| Flag | Description | Default |
|------|-------------|---------|
| `-m, --model` | Model to use | `sonar` |
| `-t, --max-tokens` | Maximum tokens (1-4096) | `4096` |
| `--temperature` | Sampling temperature (0.0-1.0) | `0.0` |
| `-c, --context` | Search context: low/medium/high | `medium` |
| `-s, --system` | System prompt | (none) |
| `-f, --format` | Output: text/markdown/json | `text` |
| `--list-models` | List available models | |

## Search Context Size

- **low** - Faster, fewer sources. Good for simple queries.
- **medium** (default) - Balanced for most use cases.
- **high** - Most comprehensive. Best for research.

## Setup Requirements

### API Key Configuration

**Option 1: Config file (recommended)**
Create `config.json` in the skill directory:
```json
{
  "apiKey": "pplx-your-key-here"
}
```

**Option 2: Environment variable**
```bash
export PERPLEXITY_API_KEY="your-key-here"
```

Priority: Config file > environment variable.

### Dependencies

- `bash` (4.0+)
- `curl`
- `python3` (for JSON construction only - no user input is eval'd)

## Security Notes

This version addresses the following vulnerabilities found in the original:

1. **No command injection** - User input is passed to Python via environment variables, never interpolated into code strings
2. **Input validation** - All parameters are validated (numeric ranges, allowed model names, allowed context values)
3. **API key protection** - The Authorization header is passed to curl via a temporary config file (`curl -K`, mode 600) and the request body via stdin (`--data @-`), so neither the API key nor the body appear in process listings (`ps aux`)
4. **Query length limit** - Queries are capped at 8000 characters to prevent denial-of-wallet attacks
5. **Strict model allowlist** - Only known valid models are accepted

## Cost Awareness

Perplexity API is not free. Be mindful of usage:

- **Simple queries**: ~$0.005-$0.015 per query
- **Deep research**: ~$0.015-$0.03+ per query
- Default to `sonar` for most queries to keep costs low.

## Troubleshooting

- **Error: No API key found** - Set up API key as described above
- **Error: curl not found** - Install curl for your system
- **Error: Invalid model** - Use `--list-models` to see available models


---
Source attribution: modbender
Original project: https://github.com/modbender/skill-library-mcp/blob/d9c8fe903b5b4e82237dbe8d0df8567783022e18/data/perplexity-safe/SKILL.md
License: MIT
License information: https://opensource.org/license/mit
Original upstream instructions; downloaded from Mega AI Hub.

## Upstream license notice

MIT License

Copyright (c) 2025 skill-library-mcp contributors

Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights
to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell
copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is
furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:

The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all
copies or substantial portions of the Software.

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR
IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE
AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER
LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM,
OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
SOFTWARE.



# Mega AI Hub resource metadata

Creator / publisher: modbender
Original project: https://github.com/modbender/skill-library-mcp/blob/d9c8fe903b5b4e82237dbe8d0df8567783022e18/data/perplexity-safe/SKILL.md
Attribution basis: Source repository record

Fields of work: Data & Analytics, Education & Research, Marketing
Roles: Data Analyst, Marketing Analyst, Researcher
Specialties: API
Tools: Perplexity Api
Country applicability: Country not specified
Classification basis: Source catalog labels
Instruction SHA-256: 75ae711730876961002c2b19ca14021596967b16faa53d82afb8616e37200265