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delete_instance_in_series

delete_instance_in_series

How to control delete_instance_in_series ↓

What delete_instance_in_series does on AWS

AI agents call delete_instance_in_series to permanently remove resources in AWS — typically in cleanup and lifecycle workflows. It does its job in a single call, and there is no undo.

Critical Risk

Why delete_instance_in_series needs a policy

The presence of 'delete' in the tool name strongly suggests permanent removal of an instance. Despite the empty description, the name itself is explicit about destructive intent. The high severity reflects the blast radius of accidentally deleting AWS infrastructure via an AI agent.

From the tool's definition Tool name 'delete_instance_in_series' contains 'delete', which indicates irreversible removal of data or infrastructure. AWS context confirms this operates on cloud resources.

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

How to control delete_instance_in_series

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

policy.json
{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "hide": [
    "delete_instance_in_series"
  ]
}

delete_instance_in_series disappears from the agent's tool list entirely, and any attempt to call it is denied. The rest of the server keeps working.

  1. Create a free account and register AWS — 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.
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Related tools and policies

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Questions about delete_instance_in_series

What does the delete_instance_in_series tool do? +

delete_instance_in_series. It is categorised as a Destructive tool in the AWS MCP Server, which means it can permanently delete or destroy data. Block by default and require explicit approval.

How do I enforce a policy on delete_instance_in_series? +

Register the AWS MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for delete_instance_in_series: 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 AWS. Nothing to install.

What risk level is delete_instance_in_series? +

delete_instance_in_series is a Destructive tool with critical risk. Critical-risk tools should be blocked by default and only enabled with explicit human approval.

Can I rate-limit delete_instance_in_series? +

Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the delete_instance_in_series 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 delete_instance_in_series completely? +

Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for delete_instance_in_series. 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 delete_instance_in_series? +

delete_instance_in_series is provided by the AWS MCP server (@awslabs/mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.

Enforce policy on every AWS tool call.

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

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300 AWS tools catalogued and risk-classified — across an index of 43,000+ MCP servers.

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