This record as markdown: /tools/0xsteph-pentest-ai/select-agent.md
What select_agent does on Pentest Ai
AI agents invoke select_agent to trigger actions in Pentest Ai. What it does depends on the arguments the agent supplies, and its effects often reach beyond the immediate call: builds kicked off, notifications sent, workflows started.
Why select_agent is rated High
The tool exists on an autonomous pentesting platform alongside tools like 'authenticated_scan', 'builtin_scan', and 'discover_attack_chains'. 'select_agent' likely activates or configures an agent for offensive security operations, which constitutes triggering external operations. Given the pentesting context, misuse could initiate active attack simulations. Confidence is lowered due to the empty description.
From the tool's definition Tool name 'select_agent' on a pentesting server; description is empty and uninformative.
Attacks that exploit this kind of access
The rule that runs select_agent safely
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway: it sits between your AI agents and Pentest Ai, and checks every tool call against a rule you set before the call runs. Nothing changes on the server itself. For select_agent, this is the rule to start with:
select_agent stays usable, but rate-capped: a runaway agent can't fire it dozens of times a minute. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.
The button opens the PolicyLayer dashboard: create your workspace, connect Pentest Ai, apply this rule, and every select_agent call is checked against it from then on.
Questions about select_agent
select_agent is a execute tool on the Pentest Ai MCP server. It is categorised as a Execute tool in the Pentest Ai MCP Server, which means it can trigger actions or run processes. Use rate limits and argument validation.
Register the Pentest Ai MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for select_agent: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches Pentest Ai. Nothing to install.
select_agent is a Execute tool with high risk. Execute tools should be rate-limited and have argument validation enabled.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the select_agent rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for select_agent. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.
select_agent is provided by the Pentest Ai MCP server (0xsteph/pentest-ai). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
More on Pentest Ai, and thousands of servers like it.
Across the catalogue