Create a new search to find and add items to a webset. The search will discover entities matching your query and criteria. IMPORTANT PARAMETER FORMATS: - entity: MUST be an object like {type: "company"} (NOT a string) - criteria: MUST be array of objects like [{description: "..."}] (NOT array of...
Accepts freeform code/query input (query); High parameter count (10 properties)
Part of the Exa Websets MCP server. Enforce policies on this tool with Intercept, the open-source MCP proxy.
AI agents use create_search to create or modify resources in Exa Websets. Write operations carry medium risk because an autonomous agent could trigger bulk unintended modifications. Rate limits prevent a single agent session from making hundreds of changes in rapid succession. Argument validation ensures the agent passes expected values.
Without a policy, an AI agent could call create_search repeatedly, creating or modifying resources faster than any human could review. Intercept's rate limiting ensures write operations happen at a controlled pace, and argument validation catches malformed or unexpected inputs before they reach Exa Websets.
Write tools can modify data. A rate limit prevents runaway bulk operations from AI agents.
tools:
create_search:
rules:
- action: allow
rate_limit:
max: 30
window: 60See the full Exa Websets policy for all 16 tools.
Agents calling write-class tools like create_search have been implicated in these attack patterns. Read the full case and prevention policy for each:
Other tools in the Write risk category across the catalogue. The same policy patterns (rate-limit, validate) apply to each.
Create a new search to find and add items to a webset. The search will discover entities matching your query and criteria. IMPORTANT PARAMETER FORMATS: - entity: MUST be an object like {type: "company"} (NOT a string) - criteria: MUST be array of objects like [{description: "..."}] (NOT array of strings) Example call: { "websetId": "webset_123", "query": "AI startups in San Francisco", "entity": {"type": "company"}, "criteria": [{"description": "Founded after 2020"}], "count": 10 }. It is categorised as a Write tool in the Exa Websets MCP Server, which means it can create or modify data. Consider rate limits to prevent runaway writes.
Add a rule in your Intercept YAML policy under the tools section for create_search. You can allow, deny, rate-limit, or validate arguments. Then run Intercept as a proxy in front of the Exa Websets MCP server.
create_search is a Write tool with medium risk. Write tools should be rate-limited to prevent accidental bulk modifications.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the create_search rule in your Intercept 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 Intercept policy for create_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.
create_search is provided by the Exa Websets MCP server (exa-labs/websets-mcp-server). Intercept sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
Open source. One binary. Zero dependencies.
npx -y @policylayer/intercept