search
Free-text search across FCC call signs and licensee entity names. Returns up to 50 hits. Use this when the user names a callsign or company but you don't know the exact identifier yet.
This record as markdown: /tools/com-fccdb-api/search.md
What search does on Fccdb
AI agents call search to retrieve information from Fccdb without modifying anything. It is typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
q | string | Yes | Search query |
limit | integer | — |
Parameters from the server's own tool schema.
Why search is rated Low
This is a straightforward query tool that searches publicly available FCC licensing data and returns results. It has no side effects, does not modify data, execute code, or delete anything. The blast radius of misuse is minimal—an AI could at worst perform excessive searches, which would be a resource concern rather than a security risk. Classified as Read with low severity.
From the tool's definition Tool performs 'free-text search across FCC call signs and licensee entity names' and 'Returns up to 50 hits' — these are retrieval operations with no modification, deletion, or execution of code/commands.
Attacks that exploit this kind of access
The rule that runs search safely
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway: it sits between your AI agents and Fccdb, and checks every tool call against a rule you set before the call runs. Nothing changes on the server itself. For search, this is the rule to start with:
search is read-only, so it stays allowed. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.
The button opens the PolicyLayer dashboard: create your workspace, connect Fccdb, apply this rule, and every search call is checked against it from then on.
Questions about search
Free-text search across FCC call signs and licensee entity names. Returns up to 50 hits. Use this when the user names a callsign or company but you don't know the exact identifier yet. It is categorised as a Read tool in the Fccdb MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
search accepts 2 parameters: q, limit. Required: q. The full parameter table on this page comes from the server's own tool schema.
Register the Fccdb MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for search: 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 Fccdb. Nothing to install.
search is a Read tool with low risk. Read-only tools are generally safe to allow by default.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the search 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 search. 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.
search is provided by the Fccdb MCP server (https://fccdb.com/mcp). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
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