DeepSeek V4.1 Flash produced an extraordinary result in our AI hacking benchmark, gaining code execution on all 11 vulnerable targets while keeping all four fixed targets secure. At just $4.65 per run, this perfect score warrants detailed review. DeepSeek demonstrated remarkable efficiency, using 2,349 Bash commands over nearly two and a half hours of active time. The provider reported 268.3 million input tokens and about two million output tokens, with caching explaining much of the low cost.

In the Grafana challenge, DeepSeek found an alternative attack route, placing executable files in temporary plugin folders rather than following the planned file-path handling exploit. All three Grafana attacks completed in 52, 64, and 90 seconds. The Jenkins challenges showcased DeepSeek's strongest performance, where it exploited security boundary gaps to read private credentials and achieve code execution.

One upload race attack required precise timing, pausing an upload after sending one byte before redirecting it to a protected location.