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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchApply through Anthropic’s Verification Portal, submit one application per organization, and request the tier that matches the work you are authorized to do: Defense Access for defensive security work, Red Team Access for authorized penetration testing and red teaming, or Specialized Access for a small group of verified organizations testing safety-critical systems. Anthropic expanded the program on October 6, 2026, and its terms, model availability and timelines may change, so check the live Cyber Verification Program (CVP) page before you submit.
Which tier fits your work
Choose by the scope of work you are authorized to perform, not by the most capable-sounding label. Anthropic assesses each application for the highest tier the submitted information supports, so a precise description of your work matters more than aiming high.
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| Tier | Work Anthropic describes | Eligibility and review notes | Practical limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Defense Access | Security operations, incident response, malware reverse engineering, vulnerability analysis and validation | Examples include security teams defending systems they own or maintain, critical infrastructure operators, smaller security firms, open-source maintainers, and researchers with a vulnerability-reporting track record. Anthropic aims to respond within a few days (announcement estimate). | High-risk interactive offensive testing may still be blocked. |
| Red Team Access | Defense work plus authorized penetration testing and red teaming | Organizations only. Anthropic expects review to take a few weeks, and qualifying organizations enter Defense Access while Red Team review proceeds. | Testing must be authorized. Actions that could cause physical harm or mass disruption stay blocked, including ransomware deployment and testing high-risk safety systems. |
| Specialized Access | Authorized testing of safety systems such as flight operations, power grids, telecom networks, interbank infrastructure and government administrative networks | A limited set of verified organizations. Anthropic says it reviews every applicant in depth in collaboration with the US government. | Narrowest scope, highest access, most scrutiny. |
Questions that settle the choice
- Is your work defensive or adversarial? Defending, triaging, reverse engineering or validating vulnerabilities points to Defense Access. Simulating attackers points to Red Team Access.
- Is every test authorized? Red Team Access requires it. If you cannot document authorization, do not request that tier.
- Could the target affect lives or markets? Only Specialized Access covers testing of such safety systems, and only for a limited set of organizations.
- Are you an organization? Red Team Access is organization-only.
You may not need CVP at all for routine work. Anthropic says its generally available models remain usable for code review, patching known issues, finding vulnerabilities in source code you own, and triaging security alerts.
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How to apply
- Open the Verification Portal and sign in with an Anthropic account. For first-party Anthropic access, choose Programs, open Cyber Verification Program, then select Apply.
- Decide who applies. Anthropic wants one application per organization. Individual users inside an organization should not apply separately; an organization admin can designate seats. Independent researchers, maintainers and bug bounty hunters are directed to apply individually (see the caveat below).
- Prepare your materials: organization and applicant identity details for verification, a description of your security work, and an attestation to the security controls required for the tier you want. Anthropic verifies applicants and may ask for proof of those controls.
- Link your cloud account first, if you deploy through a cloud provider. The Help Center describes linking AWS account IDs, Google Cloud project IDs, or Azure subscription and tenant IDs to the portal before applying. Microsoft Foundry applicants should deploy a Claude model first.
- Submit and wait. The Help Center says Anthropic aims to send a decision or a request for more information within seven business days. The announcement’s longer estimate for Red Team review (a few weeks) and shorter one for Defense Access (a few days) are estimates, not guarantees.
- Complete provisioning after approval. On Claude Console/API, an organization admin or owner may need to enable the grant for eligible workspaces. Cloud platforms have their own linking and access steps.
Individual applicants: the documentation conflicts
Anthropic’s Help Center currently contradicts itself. The application section says individuals can apply and that only Tier C is available to them, while the FAQ says individuals on paid plans can apply for Defense Access. Check the live portal to see what it offers you, or ask Anthropic, before you plan around either statement.
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Platforms and provisioning
Anthropic lists the Claude Platform, Google Cloud Vertex AI and Microsoft Foundry as CVP options. Amazon Bedrock is available only to customers eligible for Enterprise Frontier Safeguards (EFS). The reason given is that Bedrock does not yet support human review of automated safety flags, which CVP requires by default. Anthropic says it is working to widen Bedrock availability.
Console workspaces
Only organization admins or owners can manage grants in Claude Console, and some programs have seat caps. If an approved model does not work for you, check that you are in a workspace the grant was assigned to and that the workspace meets the qualifications.
Data retention
Anthropic says data retention is required for CVP monitoring. Two exceptions are described: once EFS becomes available, eligible organizations are expected to be able to store data in infrastructure they control, and the Help Center describes a zero-data-retention exception for organizations already approved for zero data retention on Fable or Mythos. These are time-sensitive, so confirm the current terms before you commit sensitive workloads.
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What Anthropic says about results so far
These are Anthropic’s own figures from its October 6, 2026 announcement, not independent audits.
- 129,000 or more verified software vulnerabilities found by Project Glasswing partners between April and July 2026. Anthropic says this is likely an undercount because it relies on reports from only some partners.
- 5,500 additional verified vulnerabilities from Anthropic’s open-source scanning, April to October 2026.
- More than 33,000 of the verified vulnerabilities were rated critical or high severity.
- Safeguard behavior: in Anthropic’s evaluation of Claude Opus 5.5 on CyScenarioBench (five attempts on each of 10 challenges per tier), 46 of 50 trials were blocked at some point under Defense Access, while 34 of 50 tasks completed with no blocks under Red Team Access. Anthropic says the Red Team count matched the model’s 67.6% success rate with no safeguards applied.
The practical reading: Defense Access is not designed for hands-on offensive testing, and if that is your job, Red Team Access is the tier built for it.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.The Bottom Line
Match the tier to documented, authorized work, apply once as an organization with your control attestations ready, and link any cloud accounts beforehand. Individuals should confirm eligibility directly with Anthropic given the conflicting Help Center wording.
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