The Tool Desk
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Use this checklist before granting access
- Define the task and outcome. Write down what the agent must accomplish. Remove tools that are unrelated or merely convenient; OWASP recommends limiting extensions to those needed for the task.
- Choose the smallest useful tool set. Prefer a purpose-built operation over a broad, open-ended tool. For example, an agent that summarizes documents may need to read selected messages but not send or delete them.
- Limit the resources it can reach. Scope access to the relevant files, records, repositories, accounts, or destinations. Avoid giving an agent access to an entire account when a specific folder or dataset will do.
- Use an attributable, task-appropriate identity. Prefer a distinct agent identity or delegated authorization with only the necessary downstream rights. Avoid shared personal credentials and generic privileged accounts. NIST discusses these safeguards while noting that agent identity practices continue to develop. See NIST’s guidance on agent identity.
- Start with read-only access. If the task is to find, retrieve, or summarize information, do not also enable changes. NIST describes read-only, constrained-write, and write patterns as categories for considering tool constraints, not as a universal permission standard. See NIST’s tool-use taxonomy.
- Grant each write capability separately. Drafting, editing, sending, posting, executing code, deploying, deleting, transferring funds, and changing permissions have different consequences. Allow only the operations the task requires.
- Enforce authorization outside the model. Check every operation in the tool or downstream system; do not rely on the agent to decide whether its own action is permitted. For consequential actions, tie approval to the specific actor, tool, target, parameters, and time window. If a required policy or approval check fails, block the action.
- Constrain broad tools and execution environments. For coding agents, review and allowlist MCP servers and tools, validate arguments, restrict filesystem and network access, and use a sandbox with task-scoped, ephemeral credentials. OWASP’s Secure Coding with AI guidance addresses these coding-specific controls.
- Make approval prompts meaningful. Require human approval for high-impact actions, but avoid asking users to approve every low-risk step. Repeated, low-value prompts can lead to consent fatigue, as NIST notes in its agent identity guidance.
- Monitor activity and revisit grants. Log tool use and downstream actions, and apply rate limits where appropriate. Monitoring can help detect unwanted behavior, but it does not replace narrow permissions or authorization checks. Remove extensions that are no longer needed, and review tool definitions and access when integrations change; an approved MCP tool’s definition may later change. OWASP covers these risks in its LLM06:2025 Excessive Agency guidance.
Choose a permission level that matches the action
This ladder is a practical synthesis, not a formal NIST or OWASP rating scale. OWASP’s examples distinguish reading from writing, sending, code execution, deletion, and fund transfers; the appropriate risk depends on the particular system and context. See the OWASP AI Agent Security Cheat Sheet and NIST tool-use taxonomy.
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| Level | Typical capability | Practical default |
|---|---|---|
| Observe | Search or read defined resources | Allow only the sources needed for the task. |
| Prepare | Draft a change, message, or plan without committing it | Use when a person can review the proposed result before execution. |
| Constrained write | Make a narrow, reversible change to a limited resource | Restrict the target and operation, and log the action. |
| High-impact action | Send externally, execute code, delete data, move money, change access, or deploy | Require independently enforced authorization and meaningful confirmation; add stronger controls for irreversible actions. |
Decide whether an action needs approval
Consider the action’s scope and consequences rather than treating all tool calls alike. OWASP’s risk labels are examples, not universal ratings for every deployment.
- Resource scope: What files, records, accounts, or destinations can the agent reach?
- Operation scope: Can it read, draft, write, send, delete, execute, or administer?
- Identity: Whose authority does the agent represent, and can the action be attributed to it?
- Impact and reversibility: Who could be affected, and how difficult would it be to undo the result?
- Enforcement: Does an independent tool or downstream policy system check authorization on each operation?
- Exposure: Could untrusted inputs, network access, credentials, or broad tools affect what the agent can do?
Use these factors to reserve approval for actions with meaningful consequences. OWASP recommends minimizing permissions and checking authorization in downstream systems rather than relying on an LLM’s judgment. See OWASP LLM06:2025.
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Why “the agent can decide” is not a permission control
An agent’s reasoning does not enforce the boundary around a tool. The tool or downstream system should independently verify that the identity is allowed to perform the requested operation on the specified target. OWASP states: “Implement authorization in downstream systems rather than relying on an LLM to decide if an action is allowed or not.” Its AI Agent Security Cheat Sheet also recommends least privilege and explicit authorization for sensitive operations.
For actions requiring human confirmation, make the approval specific to what will happen. A confirmation for one recipient, file, or transaction should not silently authorize a different target or a later action. If the tool cannot enforce the relevant policy or approval, do not grant it that high-impact capability.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.When to tighten permissions again
Permissions should track the task and the integration, not remain broad by default. Reassess them when the task changes, an agent gains a new tool, a tool definition changes, or the work is complete. Remove unneeded extensions and credentials, and keep records of the actions the agent took. OWASP warns that excessive functionality, excessive permissions, and excessive autonomy can combine to increase the scope of undesirable actions.
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