Medium Risk

create_role

create_role

How to control create_role ↓

What create_role does on Amazon ECS MCP Server

AI agents use create_role to create or update resources in Amazon ECS MCP Server — usually the action step of a workflow, after the agent has gathered context. Every call changes real data in your Amazon ECS MCP Server environment.

Medium Risk

Why create_role needs a policy

Creating an IAM role is a reversible write operation that creates new cloud infrastructure. While not immediately destructive, it modifies the security posture and access control configuration of AWS infrastructure. The tool has medium severity because misconfigured roles could grant unintended permissions, but the action itself is reversible through deletion.

From the tool's definition Tool name 'create_role' indicates creation of an IAM role, which is a write operation that creates new AWS identity and access control entities.

Documented attack patterns abuse exactly the kind of access create_role gives an agent:

How to control create_role

PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway — it sits between your AI agents and Amazon ECS MCP Server, and nothing reaches the server without passing your rules. This is the rule we recommend for create_role:

policy.json
{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "tools": {
    "create_role": {
      "limits": [
        {
          "counter": "create_role_rate",
          "window": "minute",
          "max": 30,
          "scope": "grant"
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

create_role stays usable, but capped — an agent stuck in a loop can't make hundreds of changes a minute. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.

  1. Create a free account and register Amazon ECS MCP Server — nothing to install.
  2. Add this policy — paste it, or build it visually.
  3. Point your MCP client (Claude, Cursor, anything) at your gateway URL.
LIMIT THIS TOOL →

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Related tools and policies

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Questions about create_role

What does the create_role tool do? +

create_role. It is categorised as a Write tool in the Amazon ECS MCP Server MCP Server, which means it can create or modify data. Consider rate limits to prevent runaway writes.

How do I enforce a policy on create_role? +

Register the Amazon ECS MCP Server MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for create_role: 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 Amazon ECS MCP Server. Nothing to install.

What risk level is create_role? +

create_role is a Write tool with medium risk. Write tools should be rate-limited to prevent accidental bulk modifications.

Can I rate-limit create_role? +

Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the create_role 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.

How do I block create_role completely? +

Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for create_role. 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.

What MCP server provides create_role? +

create_role is provided by the Amazon ECS MCP Server MCP server (awslabs.ecs-mcp-server). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.

Enforce policy on every Amazon ECS MCP Server tool call.

Start from Amazon ECS MCP Server, add the rest of your stack, and see everything your agents can call. Then put policy on all of it.

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805 Amazon ECS MCP Server tools catalogued and risk-classified — across an index of 43,000+ MCP servers.

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